The four major banks support the market, Huabao Fund's billion-yuan Bank ETF (512800) demonstrates strong resilience, with a triple allocation logic, and safe-haven funds are flooding in.

On March 19, A-shares sentiment was subdued, with the Shanghai Composite Index falling more than 1%. The banking sector showed remarkable resilience throughout the day, and the billion-dollar top-flow bank ETF (512800) repeatedly surged into the green during trading, but closed down 0.37% by the end of the session, clearly outperforming the broader market. State-owned major banks all made efforts, with Industrial and Commercial Bank leading the gains at 1.89%, Agricultural Bank and China Construction Bank rising over 1%, and Bank of China, Xiamen Bank, and others rebounding against the trend.

Currently, ongoing geopolitical conflicts continue, and market risk appetite has declined, prompting investors to prefer low-risk assets with more certain prospects. Recently, the bank ETF (512800) has attracted capital attention; data from the Shanghai Stock Exchange shows it has absorbed 6.27 billion yuan in net inflows over the past four days.

Considering both domestic and international factors, analysis suggests that, at this stage, the banking sector may have at least three strategic allocation reasons:

First, increased demand for risk aversion and allocation. In an environment of rising global uncertainties and declining interest rates, banks, as high-dividend assets with “bond-like” qualities and cost-effectiveness, are increasingly attractive to long-term funds such as insurance and pension funds.

Second, significant potential for incremental capital inflows. With many bank deposits maturing and institutional investors like insurance funds having substantial capital to allocate in the future, the high-dividend, low-volatility banking sector aligns well with their long-term investment needs.

Third, valuation advantages. After previous adjustments, the valuation of the banking sector is at a relatively low level historically. If market volatility increases or growth stocks are highly valued, this could attract various funds, including those that missed earlier opportunities, to flow back into the sector.

Feng Chengcheng, fund manager of the bank ETF (512800), also stated that whether from the perspective of fundamental certainty and stability, dividend value, or defensive style, the banking sector has positive triggers. In the context of declining market risk appetite, banks, as dividend assets in a recovery phase, are attractive for allocation.

Bank ETF (512800) and its associated funds (Class A: 240019; Class C: 006697) passively track the CSI Bank Index, which includes 42 listed banks in A-shares, making it an efficient investment tool for tracking the overall banking sector trend. The latest size of the bank ETF (512800) exceeds 12 billion yuan, with an average daily trading volume of over 800 million yuan since 2025, making it the largest and most liquid among the 10 A-share banking ETFs.

Data source: Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges, etc.

ETF fee-related notes: When investors subscribe or redeem fund units, the authorized agencies may charge a commission of up to 0.5%, which includes fees collected by stock exchanges, registries, and related entities. Fee details for the associated funds: The subscription fee for Huabao CSI Bank ETF (A class) is 1,000 yuan per transaction for subscriptions of 2 million yuan or more, 0.6% for 1–2 million yuan, and 1% for less than 1 million yuan; redemption fees are 1.5% if held less than 7 days, 0.5% for 7–180 days, 0.25% for 180 days to 1 year, and 0% for over 1 year, with no sales service fee. The C class of Huabao CSI Bank ETF (C class) does not charge a subscription fee; redemption fee is 1.5% if held less than 7 days, 0% if held 7 days or more; sales service fee is 0.4%.

Risk warning: The bank ETF passively tracks the CSI Bank Index, which was launched on December 31, 2004, and published on July 15, 2013. The index components are adjusted periodically according to the index rules. Past performance does not predict future results. The index components shown are for display purposes only; individual stock descriptions are not investment advice and do not reflect holdings or trading activity of any fund managed by the manager. The risk level assessed by the fund manager for this fund is R3—medium risk, suitable for balanced (C3) and above investors. Any information in this document (including but not limited to individual stocks, comments, forecasts, charts, indicators, theories, or any other expressions) is for reference only; investors are responsible for their own investment decisions. Furthermore, any opinions, analyses, or forecasts in this document do not constitute investment advice and the fund manager is not responsible for any direct or indirect losses resulting from the use of this content. Fund investments carry risks; past performance does not guarantee future results, and the performance of other funds managed by the fund manager does not guarantee the performance of any specific fund. Investors should exercise caution.