From "Buying Funds" to "Finding Investment Advisors" - Insights from a Retired Executive's 20 Years of Investing

January 2026, Shenzhen, early morning. Mr. Wang opens the official E Fund Wealth App “e-wallet” at home to view the asset allocation plan tailored by his investment advisor. A year ago, this executive, who dedicated half his life to the company’s development, officially retired, ending over 20 years of a global career. Now, spending time with family and enjoying life are his top priorities.

However, the considerable assets accumulated over a lifetime face a “sweet burden”—how to protect his hard-earned wealth from inflation, achieve steady growth, and do so without consuming his valuable personal time after retirement? E Fund Wealth’s professional investment advisory service just meets his need for “ease and stability,” opening a new chapter on his wealth journey.

Funds—Embracing the Starting Point of Wealth Market Investment

This company executive, who grew up in a small county town, has a life story filled with “daring” and “going with the flow.”

“Family conditions were average, and studying was the only way to change my destiny.” From a young age, Mr. Wang studied diligently, entering university with perseverance. He majored in computer-controlled switching technology, a field that was almost blank in China at the time and represented the industry frontier. During university, he excelled academically and took the initiative to serve as a student union officer, developing strong organizational and communication skills through event planning and coordination. The campus was located in a mountainous area with poor transportation and frequent water shortages, but these hardships forged his resilient and proactive character.

After graduation, Mr. Wang had the opportunity to study abroad, but the young generation of that era, full of ideals and passion, chose to stay. He hoped to use his knowledge to improve the then-inefficient domestic communication infrastructure and difficult telephone connections.

But a stable life ultimately couldn’t suppress his pioneering spirit.

Around 1995, as reform swept across China, he resigned despite his family’s opposition and moved south to join a leading company eager to expand overseas markets. This marked nearly 30 years of intense work, dedicating his energy to the company’s growth. Throughout his career, he never stopped learning—pursuing a master’s degree, becoming a versatile talent with expertise in both communication technology and finance. This laid the foundation for his transition from R&D to market roles, and later to leading the finance department’s financing business.

Over nearly 30 years, Mr. Wang’s footprints spanned more than 100 countries. He often traveled over 200 days a year, with many long-term overseas assignments. “I’ve been to almost every continent, witnessed the rise of emerging markets, and experienced the global financial crisis,” he recalls with emotion. This experience gave him a perspective and vision far beyond ordinary, and early on made him realize the importance of investment in wealth accumulation through frequent dealings with domestic and international financial institutions.

Around 2004, China’s real estate and stock markets entered a rapid growth phase. Most of his friends invested in property or stocks, and Mr. Wang also bought two apartments. But unlike those who followed the trend blindly, he remained rational and trusted professionalism—“just as a company focuses on R&D, investments should be entrusted to professionals.” In March 2004, Mr. Wang subscribed to E Fund’s A-shares fund through a counter. This seemingly simple transaction marked the beginning of his trusting relationship with E Fund.

Over the next 20 years, China’s capital markets experienced multiple cycles of bull and bear markets, but Mr. Wang’s investment journey never stopped. In 2006 and 2007, he repeatedly purchased E Fund products during business trips; during the market correction in 2013, he continued to buy E Fund products; from 2014 to 2021, he made multiple additional investments via “e-wallet.” Although he redeemed some funds, his core holdings remained unchanged.

Due to frequent overseas travel, Mr. Wang had little time to monitor his accounts, and his investments were mostly long-term passive holdings. This steadfastness paid off with substantial returns, complemented by stock options from his company, accumulating considerable wealth over more than two decades.

Investment Advisory—A Worry-Free Wealth Manager

In 2024, Mr. Wang retired, ending his 30-year overseas life of frequent travel and separation from family. His greatest wish after retirement was to return home, spend more time with his children, and enjoy life. However, new concerns arose: “My money is growing, but I feel more anxious—worried about mismanaging it and losing what I’ve worked so hard to save.”

Looking back, Mr. Wang jokes that although he is a finance professional, he is a “layman” when it comes to investing.

He explains that previously, he mainly relied on recommendations or experience-based “reading between the lines” when choosing funds, without understanding industry trends or specific strategies. He bought funds through banks and brokerages but rarely received follow-up services. His account values fluctuated wildly with market ups and downs, and when market changes or investment doubts arose, he could only handle them alone, often ending in indecision.

Now, he realizes that relying solely on a single fund investment approach makes it difficult to preserve and grow wealth amid market volatility. “When I was young, I dedicated myself to my career; now, I don’t want to spend too much energy on investing.” He hopes to have professionals manage his wealth, only needing to check in briefly, while leaving the rest to experts.

This wish coincided perfectly with the launch of E Fund Wealth’s advisory service.

In December 2025, E Fund Wealth launched professional investment advisory services on its platform “e-wallet,” offering a full market of funds. Prior to this, E Fund had been deeply engaged in fund advisory for over six years, adhering to the philosophy of full-market asset allocation and full-cycle companionship, providing high-quality wealth management solutions to over 130,000 clients. The mature overseas market advisory model was well established, and upon learning about the new “e-wallet” advisory service, Mr. Wang immediately contacted and signed up, becoming one of the first managed advisory clients.

“Compared to traditional fund sales, what impressed me most about the advisory service was that they considered my situation and tailored solutions for me,” Mr. Wang said after experiencing E Fund Wealth’s advisory service. The service is based on the buy-side perspective—understanding you, creating a plan, investing on your behalf, and providing ongoing support. More importantly, the advisory fee is linked to the account’s net asset value, rather than the traditional commission-based sales model, aligning the interests of the advisory firm and the investor.

Mr. Wang recalls that E Fund Wealth did not push any products but spent a whole week communicating with him in-depth, understanding his personal situation, retirement plans, and investment goals. The advisor used questionnaires to determine his risk comfort zone, reviewed his holdings of stocks, funds, real estate, and other assets, and clearly categorized high, medium, and low-risk assets, as well as liquid assets for daily expenses, gradually clarifying his overall asset optimization strategy.

Based on detailed asset analysis and needs assessment, combined with Mr. Wang’s risk preferences, overseas work experience, and deep understanding of the tech industry, E Fund Wealth ultimately matched him with the “E Fund Wealth Industry PLUS - Equity 30%” advisory strategy. This strategy adopts a “30% equities + 70% fixed income” allocation, selecting quality funds from the entire market, with 30% in domestic equities, supplemented with QDII and commodity funds, and increased allocation to emerging tech industries to maintain growth potential while ensuring stability. Notably, after Mr. Wang authorized, E Fund Wealth managed his account fully, dynamically adjusting positions and optimizing industry allocations based on market changes to rebalance the portfolio.

“The continuous support from the advisory service is something I’ve never experienced before in my past investments. It’s very reassuring and worry-free,” Mr. Wang said. Previously, after buying funds, there was no follow-up service, and market fluctuations left him feeling insecure. Now, E Fund Wealth’s advisors proactively communicate, interpret market changes, monitor account performance, and respond promptly to needs. “In the past, market volatility often caused anxiety. Now, with E Fund Wealth managing my account and continuous support from an advisor, I hardly need to worry. When I want to know more, I just contact my advisor directly.”

His choice reflects not only a shift in his personal wealth philosophy but also the broader transformation of China’s wealth management market.

Currently, the weakening of the real estate market’s wealth accumulation function, coupled with the approaching maturity of 50 trillion yuan in fixed-term deposits, makes “asset relocation” increasingly common. However, the gap between residents’ demand for steady wealth growth and the complexity of the capital market remains wide. Fund advisory acts as a “bridge” over this gap. Unlike traditional “seller-oriented” fund sales, fund advisory adheres to a “buy-side” approach—offering asset allocation advice and full investment support, helping investors improve long-term investment experiences. More investors are now choosing professional advisory services for wealth management.

What changes is the era; what remains constant is professionalism.

“Young, I relied on daring and resilience to leave a small county, and through hard work at my company, I realized my life’s value. After retirement, I rely on professional advisory services to protect my wealth and enjoy life,” Mr. Wang said. His life story is, in fact, a microcosm of countless hardworking generations in China—personal effort combined with national growth dividends, and trust in professionalism, ultimately leading to fulfillment.