Before 2004, open-end funds were not listed and traded on the stock exchange, but were generally purchased and redeemed through consignment agencies such as banks or direct selling centers. After 2004, China innovated the operation mode of open-end funds, allowing some open-end funds to be listed and traded on the stock exchange. This kind of open-end fund is called listed open-end fund (LOF). The scale of the fund is not fixed, and the fund unit can sell it to investors at any time or buy it back at the request of investors; Without duration, it can theoretically exist forever; The price is determined by the net asset value. Closed-end funds have a fixed duration, and the fund scale is fixed during the duration. Generally, they are listed and traded on the stock exchange, and investors buy and sell fund shares through the secondary market. You are not allowed to accept new shares and offer shares for a period of time before the new round of opening up. When opening up, you can decide how much you offer or how much you reinvest, and newcomers can also buy shares at this time; Generally, the opening time is 1 week and the closing time is 1 year; The price is determined by the relationship between supply and demand, and the net value of the fund will affect the fund price, but the two are not unified. Usually, closed-end funds trade at a discount.
The variability of fund size is different. Closed-end funds have a definite duration (in China, the duration is not less than 5 years), during which the issued fund shares cannot be redeemed. Although this kind of fund can be raised under special circumstances, it must meet strict legal conditions. So in general, the size of the fund is fixed. However, the fund shares issued by open-end funds can be redeemed, and investors can also buy fund shares at will during the duration of the fund, which leads to the constant change of the total amount of funds every day. In other words, it is always in an "open" state. This is the fundamental difference between closed-end funds and open-end funds. Fund units buy and sell in different ways. When a closed-end fund is initiated, investors can subscribe to the fund management company or sales organization; When closed-end funds are listed and traded, investors can entrust brokers to buy and sell at market prices on the stock exchange. When investors invest in open-end funds, they can purchase or redeem them from fund management companies or sales organizations at any time.