Direct quotas to invest in China have been unexpectedly revived as foreign investors select tried-and-tested ways to ride theequity bull run in Shanghai and Shenzhen.

Bankers and lawyers had expected the introduction of the Shanghai Hong Kong Stock Connect, the first direct market link between mainland China and the outside world, launched six months ago this week to lower interest in using existing systems. In these, investors either apply for their own permission from Beijing — a lengthy process — or pay to use someone else’s quota, such as their bank’s.

But China’s surging stocks have produced a scramble for exposure to the gains, particularly from foreign fund managers who may not be benchmarked to China itself, but risk underperforming if they don’t find ways of following the rally and any spillover effects.