Late-night surprise! Central Huijin plays its broker trump card: the trillion-yuan grand scheme behind CICC’s "elephant swallowing"

Late at night on November 19, major news broke in China’s securities industry!

CICC, Dongxing Securities, and Cinda Securities—three brokerages under Huijin Holdings—simultaneously announced a major asset restructuring. The three brokerages will merge into one, becoming another "brokerage aircraft carrier" in China.

Based on the employee numbers in the 2024 annual report, the merged CICC, Cinda Securities, and Dongxing Securities will have a total staff of 19,985, surpassing the employee count of Guotai Haitong, Huatai Securities, CITIC Construction Investment, and China Galaxy during the same period, and closely following industry leader CITIC Securities.

CICC optimistically stated to Wallstreet CN: “The business advantages and specialties of CICC naturally complement those of the other two securities firms.”

Furthermore, the industry has observed that, with CICC’s merger with Dongxing and Cinda, the ranking of domestic brokerages will further change, with more "aircraft carrier" sized brokerages having total assets exceeding one trillion RMB emerging, making the current merger boom rival the peak period early this century.

Restructuring Details Worth Noting

According to the announcement, the restructuring method is: CICC, Dongxing Securities, and Cinda Securities are planning for CICC to absorb and merge the other two companies by issuing A shares to all A-share shareholders of Dongxing and Cinda in a share swap.

It is worth noting: All three brokerages are companies under the actual control of Central Huijin, which amounts to a "three-in-one" merger under a single controller.

The merger model is similar to Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities under Shanghai SASAC merging to become Guotai Haitong, both cases being mergers between companies under the same actual controller.

According to the new “Nine Guidelines for National Securities” and the CSRC’s “Opinions on Strengthening the Regulation of Securities Companies and Public Funds and Accelerating the Building of World-class Investment Banks and Institutions (Trial),” top firms are encouraged to enhance core competitiveness through mergers, restructuring, and organizational innovation, aiming to establish 2–3 internationally competitive investment banks and institutions by 2035.

Clearly, the merged “CICC + Dongxing + Cinda” has a greater chance of joining these ranks.

Trillion-RMB Brokerages “Surface”

If you align the timing at the 2025 third-quarter financial report, the merger of CICC, Dongxing, and Cinda reveals a competitive new industry trend.

Looking at financial indicators:

CICC achieved operating income of 20.761 billion RMB in the first three quarters this year, up 54.36% year-on-year; net profit attributable to shareholders was 6.567 billion RMB, up 129.75% year-on-year. By the end of Q3, this giant’s total assets reached 764.941 billion RMB.

Dongxing reported operating income of 3.610 billion RMB in the first three quarters, up 20.25% year-on-year; net profit attributable to shareholders was 1.599 billion RMB, up 69.56% year-on-year; total assets reached 116.391 billion RMB.

Cinda reported operating income of 3.019 billion RMB in the first three quarters, up 28.46% year-on-year; net profit attributable to shareholders was 1.354 billion RMB, up 52.89% year-on-year; total assets were 128.251 billion RMB.

Adding up the post-merger scale of the three brokerages, the future mega-brokerage will have total assets exceeding 1,009 billion RMB, and close to 10 billion RMB in net profits for the first three quarters this year—ranking at the forefront of the industry.

By total assets, the scale of “CICC + Dongxing + Cinda” would rank fourth in China’s securities sector, behind CITIC Securities, Guotai Haitong, and Huatai Securities.

By net profit attributable to shareholders, the merged “CICC + Dongxing + Cinda” ranks behind CITIC Securities, Guotai Haitong, Huatai Securities, China Galaxy, and GF Securities, entering the industry’s top six.

Based on employee numbers from the 2024 annual report, CICC, Cinda Securities, and Dongxing Securities have 14,523, 2,792, and 2,670 staff members, respectively; their post-merger total of 19,985 surpasses those of Guotai Haitong, Huatai Securities, CITIC Construction Investment, and China Galaxy, and nearly equals the more than 20,000 employees of CITIC Securities—ranking second in the industry.

CICC Responds Late at Night

CICC told Wallstreet CN: “CICC’s business advantages and specialties naturally complement those of the other two securities brokers.”

Regarding complementarity, CICC explained: Dongxing and Cinda’s strong accumulation in networks, clients, and capital resources will complement CICC’s comprehensive investment banking, specialized investment, cross-border transaction services, and wealth management capabilities.

“After the share swap, leveraging the two asset management companies’ shareholders' expertise in non-performing asset disposal, CICC can further deepen its service capacities in debt restructuring, risk mitigation, industry investment banking, and expand incremental synergies in new business areas.” CICC stated.

As for post-merger actions, CICC said: It will strengthen capital power, integrate customer resources, and further cement its leading position in the competitive landscape of the securities industry.

Industry Landscape Changes Dramatically

This round of Huijin system mergers may also pressure other large brokerages that have not yet merged. With growing enthusiasm for industry restructuring, more “aircraft carrier” brokerages may emerge in the future.

Currently, there are still many firms under the same actual controller or with the same substantive shareholders, so further changes in the industry landscape are possible.

Moreover, the shareholders and related parties of Guotai Haitong, CICC, and others who merged at the beginning of this year still have “reserve” assets, suggesting that the merger trend in the brokerage industry may last quite a while.

Three Involved Companies Suspend Trading

CICC, Dongxing Securities, and Cinda Securities all announced: Due to the significant uncertainties surrounding these matters, to ensure fair information disclosure, protect investors' interests, and avoid abnormal stock price fluctuations, their A shares will be suspended from trading from market open on Thursday, November 20, 2025.

Notably, CICC emphasized in the announcement: “This restructuring involves the simultaneous absorption and merger of two A-share listed companies by a company listed both in A and H shares, with numerous and complex matters and procedures. According to the relevant regulations of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the suspension is expected not to exceed 25 trading days.”

In addition, CICC stated: The specific cooperation plan for the restructuring is subject to further detailed agreements to be signed by the three parties.

Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market has risks; investment requires caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and does not take into account the specific investment objectives, financial situation, or needs of individual users. Users should consider whether any opinions, viewpoints, or conclusions in this article fit their particular circumstances. Investment made accordingly is at your own risk.