Hamilton Lane Launches First RMB-Denominated Fund
According to Bloomberg, private markets investment management giant Hamilton Lane is preparing its first renminbi-denominated fund, targeting RMB 1 billion to 1.5 billion (approximately $150 million to $220 million). The fund is expected to close by the end of this year and will be offered exclusively to onshore Chinese investors, according to sources familiar with the matter. This move marks Hamilton Lane's deeper penetration into China's private market landscape.
Previously, Hamilton Lane had utilized the Qualified Foreign Limited Partner (QFLP) mechanism to raise USD-denominated funds and convert them into RMB for investing in Chinese domestic assets. Notably, its direct equity strategy fund, Hamilton Lane Equity Opportunities Fund VI (EO VI), completed a $3.8 billion fundraising, demonstrating the firm's strong capital-raising capabilities in private equity.
Crypto and Tokenization Push
Beyond traditional private markets, Hamilton Lane has been actively expanding into crypto and tokenized assets. In March of this year, the firm made a strategic investment in Republic, a blockchain-based investment platform. Its tokenized credit fund, the Hamilton Lane Senior Credit Opportunities Securitization Fund (HLSCOPE), is now custodied on-chain, with approximately $9 million in assets on the Polygon network. The fund primarily invests in senior secured private credit and senior secured loans across North America and Europe.
This tokenized credit fund represents a convergence of traditional private credit with blockchain technology, enabling on-chain custody, transparency, and potential liquidity improvements. Hamilton Lane's dual moves — a RMB fund for China and tokenized credit on Polygon — highlight the growing appetite among large traditional asset managers to explore both geographic expansion and digital asset innovation. The RMB fund underscores the firm's long-term commitment to the Chinese market, while the tokenization initiatives signal a broader strategic pivot toward on-chain finance.