Media planning and buying assignment will be conducted in-house and by some local shops. The appointment of Burnett marks the first time that the China's third-largest fund management institution has appointed a 4As agency to handle its creative.
According to Burnett managing director Kelvin Cheng, the pitch covered both strategy and creative.
Since the beginning of 2004, more than 15 mutual funds have been launched in China. Harvest Fund Management's main rivals are Hua Xia, Hai Fu Tong and Bo Shi. Burnett's appointment comes at a time when the relatively new fund management business is gearing for increased competition.
Cheng said: "With encouragement from the State Council to sell more mutual funds this year, the growth potential for China's financial sector is clearly huge - particularly as, from the end of this year, a foreign company can hold up to 49 per cent of a joint-venture fund management company is China.
"At the moment, nobody in the industry has done a brand image campaign before. Most ads are about products and stress financial returns."