To obtain a new compound having an α-substituted carbonyl residue, exhibiting excellent cleaning and bleaching action and useful as an odorless peroxyacid precursor.

This compound is represented by formula I [R is H or a ≤5C alkyl; L is a group of formula II, formula III, etc., [Y is a sulfonic acid salt, a sulfuric acid salt, a 1-6C alkyl, etc.; (n) is 0, 1 or 3]. The compound of formula I is obtained by using phenol and chloroacetic acid as readily available raw materials and subjecting the phenol to condensation reaction with chloroacetic acid to afford phenoxyacetic acid and binding an isolating group (e.g. substituted phenols) to phenoxyacetic acid. The compound of formula I can form a peracid (e.g. peroxyacid) in excellent yield by reacting with a peroxyanion in an aqueous solution.