China brokers rebuild ranks, raise pay on dealmaking return

CHINA’S biggest securities firms are back on the offensive after taking a battering over the past few years.

Investment banking divisions of major brokerages, including Citic Securities, Huatai Securities and CSC Financial, have in recent months recruited dozens of junior and mid-level bankers, according to sources familiar with the moves, who asked not to be named discussing private information.

New hiring has focused primarily on execution roles rather than senior rainmakers, reflecting a need to quickly rebuild capacity while keeping costs under control. Base salaries for junior bankers at some large brokerages have been adjusted back towards pre-crackdown levels, though bonus pools remain closely tied to deal completion and regulatory attitude towards the sector, the sources said.

The push marks a major turnaround for China’s brokerages. Over the past few years, they have been battered by a slowdown in dealmaking, President Xi Jinping’s “common prosperity” agenda, and an unprecedented anti-corruption drive.

Traders and bankers were even lambasted as “hedonistic” as the powers in Beijing ordered pay cuts, lower bonuses and more adherence to Communist Party discipline.

The new recruitment underscores how quickly sentiment has shifted as China’s equity markets regained momentum last year on the back of a technology and AI driven rally. With Beijing pushing to rekindle markets and the overall economy, China’s market for initial public offerings (IPOs) is on the rise again.

Still, China’s securities regulator on Wednesday (Jan 14) tightened margin lending requirements to cool a rally in stocks.

The recovery has not been limited to the onshore market. Hong Kong has also seen a sharp pickup in listing activity, with several large-scale share sales revitalising underwriting pipelines for both Chinese and international banks. The resurgence of the offshore market has also intensified competition for experienced deal professionals with cross-border execution capabilities, the sources said.

Spokespeople for Citic, Huatai and CSC did not immediately respond to requests for a comment.

Overall, mainland China IPO deal values rose 30 per cent last year after sliding for two years, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. In Hong Kong, where Chinese brokerages top the league tables, IPOs more than tripled after three doldrum years.  

“Hong Kong’s IPO deal value in 2026 should top 2025 and we also anticipate the rebound in onshore mainland IPOs since late 2025 to gain momentum this year,” said Sharnie Wong, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. “Equity capital market hiring activity could pick up.”

Broker profits slumped in 2022 and 2023 before rebounding over the next two years. The combined profits at China’s brokerages rose 40 per cent to 112.3 billion yuan (S$21 billion) in the first half of 2025, official data showed.

As banks are feeling more optimistic, a long-awaited consolidation is also taking place in the industry. Beijing has a long-stated goal of developing its domestic investment banks to allow them to compete with global heavyweights such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley.

There have been several big mergers. In late 2024, the merger between Guotai Junan Securities and Haitong Securities was approved. China International Capital Corporation followed up last month with a plan to absorb two smaller rivals in deals worth a combined US$16 billion.

The total number of employees in the brokerage industry fell to 328,000 at the end of last year, down from 336,600 at the end of 2024, according to data from the Securities Association of China. BLOOMBERG