What enables a fund to multiply twelvefold in a decade and surge 130% in under half a year?

Huashang Advantage Industry Fund A (000390.OF) has demonstrated the power of long-term compounding with a near-10-year return of 1264.48%, while Caitong Growth Preferred Fund A has skyrocketed 130.28% in less than six months of 2026, showcasing extreme short-term momentum. Surprisingly, several of these 'endurance champions' also rank near the top of this year's performance charts.

What are their major holdings? AI, semiconductors, or robotics? Which fund houses and managers are consistently generating wealth? This analysis dissects the common characteristics of 43 top-performing funds across three timeframes—the past 10 years, the past 5 years, and year-to-date—to help identify potential winners for the next market cycle.

Identifying the Long-Term Leaders: Top Decade-Long Returns Exceed 1264%

From a 10-year perspective, actively managed equity funds have demonstrated remarkable long-term compounding effects. Huashang Advantage Industry Fund A (000390.OF) leads the pack with a cumulative return of 1264.48%, establishing itself as the most stellar 'long-distance runner' of the past decade. E Fund Rui Xiang I (001437.OF) and Caitong Value Momentum Fund A (720001.OF) follow closely, delivering near-10-year returns of 926.25% and 905.56%, respectively.

Additionally, products like Huashang New Trend Preferred (166301.OF), Anxin New Return Fund A (002770.OF), and Wanja Emerging Blue Chip (519196.OF) have all achieved returns exceeding 700%, highlighting the stock-picking and timing abilities of certain fund managers to navigate through bull and bear markets.

It is noteworthy that QDII products, such as the Guotai Nasdaq 100 ETF (513100.OF), have also delivered a 10-year return of 552.59%, reflecting the contribution of the prolonged bull market in U.S. tech stocks.

Top Year-to-Date Gains Surpass 150%! Tech Growth Funds Dominate, Led by Jin Zicai and Zhang Mingxin

Since the start of 2026, structural trends in the A-share market have intensified. Sectors representing technological growth, such as AI, semiconductors, and the digital economy, have continued to gain momentum, driving a sharp rise in the net asset values of a batch of actively managed equity funds. According to the latest data, as of June 15, 2026, Caitong Multi-Strategy Fuxin (501046.OF) temporarily ranks first in the entire market with a year-to-date return of 150.10%, becoming this year's "sharpest spear."

Looking at year-to-date performance, the top-ranked funds are almost entirely dominated by tech-growth-focused fund managers like Jin Zicai of Caitong Fund and Zhang Mingxin of Huashang Fund. Jin Zicai of Caitong Fund is undoubtedly the brightest star this year. The four products he manages—Caitong Multi-Strategy Fuxin, Caitong Integrated Circuit Industry Fund A, Caitong Growth Preferred Fund A, and Caitong Value Momentum Fund A—have all gained over 110% year-to-date, with three surging more than 130%. This phenomenon of multiple products under one manager exploding simultaneously indicates that his investment strategy is highly replicable—centered on heavy allocations to core tech sectors like AI computing power, semiconductor equipment, and optical modules.

Huashang Balanced Growth Fund A, managed by Zhang Mingxin of Huashang Fund, has risen 123.66% this year, while his other new fund, Huashang Zhiyuan Return Fund A, is up 117.89%. Zhang Mingxin also performs excellently on the near-10-year performance list, making him a dual-threat performer in both endurance and sprinting. Three products managed by Sun Shuo of Manulife Fund—Manulife Revival Fund A, Manulife Performance Growth Fund A, and Manulife Growth—have all gained over 100%, with Manulife Growth up 100.20% year-to-date. Sun Shuo is similarly known for concentrated holdings in AI and semiconductors. GF Visionary Selection Fund A, managed by Tang Xiaobin of GF Fund, has risen 113.8% this year, with assets reaching 11.986 billion yuan, making it one of the largest actively managed equity funds on the list. The CSI Technology Innovation China-Korea Semiconductor ETF (513310.OF) under Huatai-PineBridge has gained 102.89%, tracking the China-Korea Semiconductor Index and benefiting from the global semiconductor cycle upturn.

Common Traits of Top Performers: Heavy Bets on High-Growth Sectors, Moderate Size, and Operational Flexibility

Whether over the long or short term, top-ranked funds are heavily invested in high-growth sectors such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), semiconductors, TMT, new energy, and robotics. For example, managers like Jin Zicai of Caitong Fund, Sun Shuo of Manulife Fund, and Liu Yuanhai of Soochow Fund are renowned as "tech growth hunters," maintaining high portfolio concentration and daring to position early before industry trends fully erupt. The top three industry allocations for these funds often exceed 60%, and they rotate according to industry cycles. For instance, Invesco Great Wall Steady Return accurately captured three thematic waves—consumer, new energy, and AI—over the past six years; Debang Xinxing Value focused heavily on semiconductor design and information innovation.

Simultaneously, most top-performing funds have asset sizes between 2 to 8 billion yuan (while Huashang Advantage Industry's 10.1 billion is considered large, most range from 3 to 6 billion), with no super-sized behemoths appearing. Moderate size facilitates quick portfolio adjustments and participation in small-to-mid-cap growth stocks.

From a manager perspective, funds with outstanding long-term performance typically have core managers with tenure exceeding five years. Examples include Zhang Mingxin (Huashang Advantage Industry), Jin Zicai (Caitong Value Momentum), Wu Yang (E Fund Rui Xiang), and Tong Li (Huashang New Trend). Strategic consistency is key to long-term success.

An examination of the holdings of this year's funds that have doubled reveals an extreme focus on technology, high concentration to capture high volatility, and common holdings in core AI computing power stocks like Cambricon Technologies, Zhongji Innolight, Wus Printed Circuit, Foxconn Industrial Internet, and Hygon Information, with top-ten holding concentrations often above 60%.

The 2026 tech growth rally is creating a batch of "doubling funds." Fund managers like Jin Zicai, Zhang Mingxin, and Sun Shuo, leveraging their deep understanding of the AI industry and steadfast holdings, have created significant alpha for their investors. For ordinary investors, rather than betting on a single high-volatility fund, it may be wiser to focus on the long-term performance stability of these managers or use dollar-cost averaging to smooth out volatility.

Risk Warning: Past fund performance does not indicate future results. Investing involves risks.