Taiwan offers the “greatest risk-reward” to international fund management companies seeking to expand in the Asian retail market, according to a global consultancy firm. Boston-based Cerulli Associates says Taiwan offers opportunities even if the market “appears unexciting at first.”

“China, the fabled market, has so far been legendary for elusive profits and won’t be profitable for some time. Hong Kong and Singapore, although the most open, are tiny markets. Korea is proving difficult for foreign asset managers,” Cerulli says in a report published last month.

“India’s sudden U-turn away from sales charges has wreaked chaos in the retail marketplace. Southeast Asia’s retail markets are either nascent or tightly held by local firms. And throughout Asia, there are encroaching regulations.”