(Yicai Global) June 17 -- The chairman of Morgan Stanley Huaxin Funds, during whose three-year tenure assets under management at the Chinese joint venture of US investment bank Morgan Stanley and brokerage Huaxin Securities increased almost 50 percent, has left the firm for personal reasons.

Zhou Xi resigned on June 15, the Shenzhen-based company announced yesterday, without saying who replaced him.

Zhou became chairman and legal representative of the firm in June 2019. While he headed Morgan Stanley Huaxin Funds, its assets under management rose to CNY29.7 billion (USD4.4 billion) as of the end of March, according to figures from financial data platform Wind.

After joining Morgan Stanley in 2008 as chief representative of Morgan Stanley Asia’s Beijing representative office and executive director of its investment banking department, Zhou also was executive director and managing director of Morgan Stanley China Private Equity Investment Management from 2011.

Founded in 2003 as Jutian Fund Management, Morgan Stanley Huaxin Funds became a JV after Morgan Stanley invested in the firm in 2008. Morgan Stanley owns 49 percent, Shenzhen-based Huaxin Security 36 percent, and PE firm Costone Capital 15 percent.

As China continues to open up its financial sector, Morgan Stanley has increased its stake in the firm twice in the past three years and applied to buy more of Huaxin Security’s holding last year. China’s securities regulator accepted the application in June 2021, but there has been no progress update so far.

Editor: Futura Costaglione