In-Depth Analysis of the Concentration Enhancement Trend in China's Securities Industry

Based on the latest collected industry data and market research reports, I will provide you with a systematic analysis of

. This is an important issue involving structural changes in the industry.

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According to the latest industry data, the concentration of China’s securities industry is experiencing a significant enhancement:

• The top 10 securities firms accounted for 65% of total revenue
  , an increase of over 2 percentage points compared to 2024
• The top 5 securities firms (CR5) accounted for approximately 42% of total revenue
• The top 10 securities firms accounted for 65% of total net assets

Year	CR5	CR10
2013	36%	58%
2015	38%	59%
2017	40%	61%
2019	39%	59%
2021	38%	60%
2023	38%	61%
Q1-Q3 2025	42%	65%

This data indicates that the enhancement of industry concentration is not a short-term fluctuation, but a reflection of

.

According to the 2024 annual report data, the revenue rankings of the top 10 leading securities firms are as follows[0][1]:

Rank	Securities Firm	Operating Revenue (CNH 100 million)	Net Profit Attributable to Parent Companies (CNH 100 million)
1	CITIC Securities	637.89	217.04
2	Guotai Haitong (formerly Guotai Junan)	433.97	130.24
3	Huatai Securities	414.66	153.51
4	China Galaxy Securities	354.71	100.31
5	GF Securities	271.99	96.37
6	Shenwan Hongyuan	247.35	-
7	CICC	213.33	-
8	CITIC Construction Investment	211.29	-
9	China Merchants Securities	208.91	103.86
10	Guosen Securities	201.67	-

• The number of securities firms with net profit attributable to parent companies exceeding CNH 1 billion increased from 2 in 2023 to
  5
  in 2024
• Guotai Haitong’s estimated net profit attributable to parent companies in the first quarter of 2025 ranges from 11.2 to 12.4 billion CNH, which is expected to surpass CITIC Securities to become the new industry leader[1]

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Compared with major global markets, there is still room for enhancement in the concentration of China’s securities industry[0][2]:

• Leading securities firms led by Nomura Securities, Daiwa Securities, and Nikko Securities account for
  approximately 40-50% of total profits
• If 3 bank-affiliated investment banks are included in the statistics, market concentration will further increase
• In Japan’s equity issuance market in 2024, the combined market share of the top 3 securities firms reached
  42%
• In Japan’s domestic corporate bond issuance market in 2024, the combined share of the top 3 securities firms reached
  68%

• Based on NYSE dealer statistics, the top 10 dealers accounted for
  57% of total operating revenue
  in 2018
• The profitability of US dealers is highly concentrated, with the top 5 dealers occupying a dominant position

Market	CR5	CR10	Characteristics
China (2025)	~42%	65%	Period of rapid enhancement
Japan	40-50%	-	Highly concentrated
US	~50%	57%	Mature and stable
International Leading Level	50%+	70%+	Significant head effect

China’s securities industry is currently in the

, and is expected to gradually converge with the level of international mature markets in the future.

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Time	Policy/Meeting	Core Content
November 2019	CSRC	Proposed “actively promoting the development of aircraft carrier-level head securities firms” and encouraging market-oriented mergers and acquisitions
July 2020	CSRC	Encouraged qualified securities firms and fund companies to carry out market-oriented mergers and acquisitions
October 2023	Central Financial Work Conference	Proposed “cultivating first-class investment banks and investment institutions” for the first time
November 2023	CSRC	Supported head securities firms to enhance their strengths through business innovation, group operation, mergers and acquisitions, etc.
April 2024	State Council’s “Nine Points”	Supported head institutions to enhance core competitiveness through mergers and acquisitions, and encouraged small and medium-sized institutions to develop in a differentiated manner

• Form a pattern of
  about 10 high-quality head institutions leading the high-quality development of the industry
• Cultivate
  2-3 investment banks with international competitiveness and market leadership

Head securities firms continue to consolidate their advantages in core businesses by virtue of scale effects:

• Head securities firms have strong capital strength, and have more advantages in equity asset allocation
• The total proprietary holding scale of listed securities firms reached
  3.7 trillion CNH
  in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 6%

• The balance of margin trading and securities lending exceeded
  2.5 trillion CNH
  in 2025
• The average daily turnover of A-shares maintained at around
  1.7 trillion CNH
• Head securities firms occupy advantageous positions by virtue of network layout and customer base

• CITIC Securities has ranked first in A-share IPO sponsorship and underwriting revenue for five consecutive years
• After the merger of Guotai Haitong (formerly Guotai Junan + Haitong Securities), the scale effect of the strong alliance has been fully released

Head securities firms achieve the transformation

through mergers and acquisitions:

• The transaction consideration exceeded
  100 billion CNH
• Share exchange ratio: 1 share of Haitong Securities A/H share can be exchanged for 0.62 shares of Guotai Junan A/H share
• After the merger, the total assets reached
  1.69 trillion CNH
  , and the net assets attributable to parent companies reached 321.7 billion CNH, ranking first in the industry
• Integration effect: Achieve structural improvement in profit returns through channel sharing, research and integration, and unified risk control[0]

• Conducive to the implementation of the Yangtze River Delta integration development strategy
• Give full play to synergistic effects to achieve complementary advantages

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According to KPMG’s 2025 China Securities Industry Survey Report, there have been a total of

in China’s securities industry since 2024[2]:

Merger and Acquisition Case	Characteristics	Progress
Guotai Junan + Haitong Securities	The largest A+H bilateral absorption merger in the history of China’s capital market	Completed (March 2025)
Guolian Securities + Minsheng Securities	Complementary advantages merger	In progress
Zheshang Securities + Guodu Securities	Phased merger to supplement regional layout	In progress
Beijing State-owned Assets + Credit Suisse China	Local state-owned assets obtain securities license	Completed

• Among the 6 transactions, there are
  5 cases
  of internal mergers and acquisitions in the securities industry
• Reflects the regulatory orientation of ‘supporting the superior and restricting the inferior’

• Guotai Junan + Haitong: Strong alliance of head securities firms to build an “aircraft carrier-level” securities firm
• Guolian + Minsheng: Complementation of regional securities firms to achieve leapfrog development

• After the merger, a financial service network covering major global capital markets such as Shanghai, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, New York, London, and Tokyo will be built

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Under the pattern of “the strong get stronger”, small and medium-sized securities firms face multiple challenges[0]:

Type of Challenge	Specific Performance
Insufficient capital strength	Difficult to support the expansion of capital-intensive businesses
Business homogenization	Lack of differentiated competitive advantages
Profitability pressure	Decline in commission rates, intensified competition

• Deeply engage in regional or characteristic businesses
• Form differentiated competitive advantages
• Maintain market sensitivity and operational flexibility

• Achieve overtaking on curves through external mergers and acquisitions
• Expand rapidly to achieve scale effects and business complementarity

• The revenue share of the top 10 securities firms is expected to further increase to
  68-70%
• Mergers and acquisitions among head securities firms will continue to advance
• Regulatory policies will continue to guide the industry towards head concentration

• The industry pattern is basically stable, forming a pattern of “2-3 world-class investment banks + about 10 high-quality head institutions”
• Small and medium-sized securities firms complete differentiated positioning
• The overall ROE level of the industry is significantly improved

• The concentration of China’s securities industry converges with the level of international mature markets (CR5 reaches above 50%)
• The international competitiveness of head securities firms is significantly enhanced
• The industry evolves from “individual competition” to “group synergy”

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Focus Area	Specific Recommendations
Head securities firms	Pay attention to valuation enhancement opportunities of leading enterprises such as CITIC Securities, Guotai Haitong, and Huatai Securities
Merger and acquisition expectations	Pay attention to valuation revaluation opportunities of small and medium-sized securities firms with merger and acquisition integration expectations
Differentiated securities firms	Pay attention to characteristic securities firms that have formed competitive advantages in segmented fields

Type of Risk	Specific Content
Regulatory reform risk	Changes in regulatory policies may affect the development path of the industry
Capital market volatility risk	Market fluctuations directly affect the profitability of securities firms
Integration risk	There is uncertainty in business integration after mergers and acquisitions
Macro-economic risk	Economic downturn may affect market activity and financing demand

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[0] Hualong Securities Research Institute - 2026 Securities Industry Five Major Trend Outlook (December 2025)
[1] Sina Finance - “Transcripts” of Top 10 Leading Securities Firms Released, Companies with Net Profit Exceeding 1 Billion CNH Expand (April 2025)
[2] KPMG - 2025 China Securities Industry Survey Report (August 2025)
[3] Soochow Securities Research Institute - In-Depth Report on Non-Bank Financial Industry: “Breaking Through and Restructuring, Building World-Class Investment Banks” (February 2025)
[4] Soochow Securities Research Institute - 2024 Annual Report Summary of the Securities Industry (April 2025)
[5] China Energy Network - Five-Year IPO Changes, Which Securities Firm Investment Banks Are at the Forefront? (2025)

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The enhancement of securities industry concentration is a , rather than short-term fluctuations. Against the backdrop of regulatory guidance to build first-class investment banks, the industry is undergoing a major transformation from fragmented competition to head concentration. This trend will profoundly reshape the competitive landscape of China’s securities industry, and head securities firms are expected to achieve long-term value enhancement by virtue of capital strength, customer base, and comprehensive service capabilities.