Key Takeaways
China’s brokerage industry consolidated in 2025, with CITIC Securities and Guotai Haitong capturing nearly 40 percent of the top 10 firms' revenue and profit after annual reports were finalized on April 17.
"The profit contribution of international business is achieving a qualitative leap," Kong Xiang's non-bank analyst team at Guosen Securities said, noting it has grown from a "supplementary" to a "core profit pillar."
CITIC Securities led with 30.08 billion yuan in net profit, while Guotai Haitong secured second place with 27.81 billion yuan. The top 10 firms' proprietary trading income grew 33 percent to 160.8 billion yuan, and brokerage fee income rose 48 percent to 94.96 billion yuan.
The growing dominance of top players suggests further industry consolidation, driven by a policy focus on creating "first-class investment banks." Head-to-head competition is now shifting to international expansion and technology, with Guotai Haitong adopting an "ALL in AI" strategy.
The 2025 results marked a significant reshuffling among China's leading investment banks. GF Securities climbed two spots to rank fourth by net profit (13.70 billion yuan), swapping places with China Merchants Securities, which fell to sixth (12.35 billion yuan). CICC and Shenwan Hongyuan Securities each moved up one position, while CITIC Construction Investment slipped from eighth to tenth place.
Proprietary trading and brokerage services were the primary performance drivers. CITIC Securities generated over half its revenue from its proprietary trading desk, which booked 38.60 billion yuan. Guotai Haitong and GF Securities saw the fastest growth in this segment, with income jumping 72 percent and 60 percent, respectively. In brokerage, Guotai Haitong unseated CITIC for the top spot with 15.14 billion yuan in fee income.
Investment banking also saw a strong recovery, with fee income for the top 10 firms growing 43 percent. CICC led the growth with a 63 percent surge, though CITIC Securities remained the largest by absolute revenue at 6.34 billion yuan.
Looking ahead, the reports signal a strategic pivot. Top-tier firms are aggressively expanding their cross-border businesses and investing heavily in technology to build more stable, diversified revenue streams. The intense concentration of profits and resources among the top few is expected to accelerate, squeezing smaller players who lack the capital for international and technological investment. Investors will watch 2026 performance to see if the gap between the "two superpowers" and the rest of the pack continues to widen.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
