Global organisation for the physical platinum market investment World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) and diversified enterprise Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia last month launched the first platinum bar products in China.

The organisation announced that the launch is part of a new strategic partnership between the WPIC and Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia to develop the physical platinum investment market in South China.

Under the agreement, the WPIC will work with Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia to develop and launch a range of platinum investment products to suit a range of investor needs. A number of new products will be launched throughout this year, starting with high purity 999.5 platinum bars.

“While China has long been the world’s biggest consumer of platinum, its platinum investment infrastructure has yet to be fully developed. We see a huge opportunity and appetite to open up platinum investment opportunities in China,” says WPIC China head Weibin Deng.

He says the new platinum bar product represents an important milestone for the market, as it addresses a clear gap for spot investment and, more broadly supports platinum’s growth potential as a retail investment medium.

“We look forward to working closely with Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia to continue expanding the range of platinum investment products available to local investors. This is the first of a number of platinum product initiatives for Chinese investors that we expect to be able to announce in the near future,” Deng enthuses.

Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia CEO Zhu Zhigang notes that WPIC brings knowledge, experience and technical expertise in platinum as an investment, complementing the company’s role as a leader in precious metals.

“This partnership will further strengthen China’s position as Asia’s precious metals hub and the continued development of platinum investment in the region.”

The announcement is the latest in a series of strategic initiatives from the WPIC to stimulate further investor demand for physical platinum and increase the number and type of platinum investment opportunities available globally.

WPIC has been consulting with a number of local market authorities and potential partners in China as it establishes a comprehensive pipeline of initiatives for the Chinese market.

“Early indications from research by the WPIC are that incremental yearly demand for platinum bar and other investment products could be in the hundreds of thousands of ounces in two to three years.”

The investment-grade platinum bars are minted by internationally renowned Swiss precious metal refiner Metalor Group.

The bars are available in sizes of 10 g, 15 g and 100 g and are currently sold at a low premium through Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia’s distribution network in Shenzhen and Guangzhou. This will initially be through Shenzhen Hengfu Yingjia’s outlets and some department stores, with online availability to follow shortly.