Recently, the fund market has once again emerged as the phantom of "helping funds". An active equity fund established at the end of last year dropped sharply from 1.4 billion yuan to less than 50 million yuan after three months of operation. The fund issued an announcement showing that as of March 20, the fund's net asset value has been below 50 million yuan for 30 consecutive working days. According to the contract, if the number of fund share holders is less than 200 or the fund's net asset value is less than 50 million yuan for 50 consecutive working days, the fund will be liquidated.
From the "sold well" explosive funds that bucked the trend during the market downturn, to the redemption of more than 1.3 billion yuan less than a week after the redemption was opened, and now that it is about to fall below the liquidation line, what happened to this fund? In the eyes of market analysts, the high probability is the fault of "helping funds".

The so-called "help funds" refer to funds that help the fund maintain its establishment or make the initial launch larger by subscribing for new funds during the fund issuance stage. 近两年，由于市场行情的不温不火，很多中小基金公司面临着发行压力，为了让产品规模达到成立门槛，很多公司不得不找“帮忙资金”救场，这在业内已经是公开的秘密。
从短期看，“帮忙资金”似乎真的可以解基金公司的燃眉之急，一方面可以帮助公司成立新产品，维护好公司声誉，毕竟没有公司想让“卖不出产品”和自己联系在一起。另一方面“帮忙资金”的入场可以壮大产品的发行声势，一款炙手可热的基金无疑会吸引更多投资者的目光，有利于后续的持续销售。
However, in the long run, the potential hidden dangers brought by "help funds" far outweigh the benefits gained in the early stage, and it is likely to help. 首先，“帮忙资金”会对基金经理的投资管理带来束缚，由于这部分资金存在于基金产品的建仓期，为了避免后期赎回时出现明显亏损，基金经理不得不采取保守的策略，甚至消极建仓，一些良好的投资机会也会因此错失。其次，天下没有免费的午餐，“帮忙资金”的拆借费用大概率需要动用基金公司自身的运营资金来支付，这进一步增加了基金公司的成本负担。再次，若投资者发现“帮忙资金”大幅撤出，会对其持有信心造成冲击，一旦引发集体赎回，基金产品最终也逃脱不了被清盘的命运。
More importantly, the emergence of "help funds" is a violation of the legitimate rights and interests of individual investors. 在资本市场，个人投资者本身就具有信息不对称的劣势，“帮忙资金”的快速进出可能带来基金热销的假象，误导投资者的投资决策。同时，由于“帮忙资金”通常不会长期持有基金份额，一旦开放赎回便可能迅速离场，这会对基金净值产生较大冲击，最终买单的还是投资者。
为了推动公募基金行业健康稳健发展，更好保护投资者权益，遏制“帮忙资金”的使用已刻不容缓。监管部门应尽快提升监管效能，加强对新基金发行的审核力度，对损害公众投资者利益的机构依法予以严厉打击。同时，相关部门要进一步完善法律规定，逐步提高发行透明度，明确“帮忙资金”的认定标准，为监管部门执法提供更好的法律依据。
基金公司也应该尽快摒弃依靠“帮忙资金”这种短视行为，拿出更多精力用于自身的投研能力建设上面，用合理的回报来赢得投资者的信任，切莫为了眼前的蝇头小利反复冒险，“饮鸩止渴”终究不是长远之计。