The granting of the qualified foreign institutional investor status now enables it to trade in China's A-share market through the stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzen. The A-share market is one of the largest equity markets in the world, with some 2,500 shares listed and a market capitalisation of around $4 trillion. 

"We have acquired a very exclusive access to a stock market which is expected to grow considerably and become more open to foreign investors in the coming decades, and which is currently priced at attractive valuations," said Allan Polack, head of asset management at Nordea. 

The Chinese government started handing out RQFII licences to foreign institutions in 2011 as part of efforts to internationalise the Renminbi. At present, only around 2 per cent of trade is attributed to foreign players.