Restructuring of Brokerage Commission Income Patterns: Public Fund Fee Reform Triggers Deep Industry Adjustments
Overall Industry Overview: A 30% Shrinkage in Commission Income, Reshaping the Top Tier
In the first half of 2024, data on brokerage commission income from split accounts was officially released, showing a total income of 6.774 billion yuan for the entire industry, a significant decline of 30% compared to 9.735 billion yuan during the same period in 2023. This notable drop directly reflects the profound impact of public fund commission rate reforms. From an industry perspective, the top 27 brokerages contributed a combined commission income of 5.415 billion yuan, accounting for 80% market share and indicating a clear trend towards increased industry concentration.
Among brokerages with over one hundred million yuan in commission income, only Minsheng Securities achieved counter-cyclical growth; all other firms experienced varying degrees of decline. While leading brokerages maintained their overall advantage, internal rankings underwent significant changes. CITIC Securities retained its top position with an income of 501 million yuan but saw a year-on-year decrease of 26%; GF Securities ranked second with an income of 387 million yuan and a year-on-year drop of 19%. CITIC Construction Investment, Changjiang Securities, and Guotai Junan followed in third to fifth places with incomes respectively at 350 million yuan, 330 million yuan and278 million yuan—all experiencing declines exceeding26%. Notably, Guotai Junan improved its ranking by one place compared to2023 due to its comprehensive client management advantages.
Policy Background Analysis: Institutional Changes in Public Fund Commissions Reforms
In December2023,the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) issued regulations titled “Regulations on Strengthening Management Over Trading Activities Related to Open-End Mutual Funds (Draft for Comments),” marking the official launchof thesecond phase offee reform withinthepublicfundindustry.April19th ,2024sawthe formal releaseofthe“Regulations onManagementofTradingCostsforOpen-EndMutualFunds”(hereinafter referredto as“the Regulations”), which took effectonJuly1st .This reform fundamentally impacts brokerage research business models. According tothe requirements outlinedin theregulations ,commission ratesforpassive equity funds must not exceed0 .0262%, whileother types cannot surpass0 .0524%.More critically,new rules explicitly prohibit linkingbroker selection ,trading unit leasing,andcommission distributionwith fund sales volume ,completely altering theyears-long commercial model where “fund sales exchanged for trading commissions.” This means that trading commissions can now solely be usedtopayforresearch services,making brokerage research departments thenew sole compliant entry point for distributing commissions. Numerous seasoned professionals within this sector have pointed out that first-half data reflecta unique state duringthis transitional periodofreform.Onone hand,fund companies needtocomplete clearing historical deficits before implementing new regulations ;on another hand,both brokers are actively adjusting theirbusinessmodelsandre-negotiatingcommission rate agreementswith fund clients.This institutional change has ledto direct manifestations intheoverall shrinkageand reshuffling oftiered rankings observedinthefirsthalfyear’scommissionincome data.
Exemplary Counter-Cyclical Growth: Analyzing Minsheng Securities’ Rise Path
Against this backdropof overallindustry downturn,minshengsecurities' performance isremarkable.InH12024,this brokerage achievedsplit account commission incomefor2 .01billionyuan,a year-on-year increaseof4 %,jumpingfrom17thplacein2023to9thplacewithamarketshareincreaseup to2 .96 %.This achievementis closely linkedtotheirstrategic focusonthecontinuously strengtheningresearch capabilitiesover recentyears.Backtracking throughitsdevelopment trajectory,minshengsecurities'research institute hasachieved leapfrog developmentwithinjustthree years.Its split accountcommissions surgedfrom57millionyuansin2021to366millionyuansin2023,increasingmarket share from0 .26 %to2 .18 %,whileitsrankings soaredfrom49thplaceto17 th.The sustainedgrowth seeninthelatter halfof20/24 further solidifieditspositionamongthetop ten playersintheindustry.MinshengSecurities'successcanbeattributedtomultiple factors.Firstly,theeffectivenessoftheirresearchteam constructionhasbeen substantial.LedbyNew Fortune Platinum Analyst Hu Youwen,research institute recruited core talents suchas Chief Economist Tao Chuan earlythisyear,resultinginastable structure consistingof26 research teams.Secondly,research coverage isboth extensiveand focused,specifically establishingcompetitive advantages across fields like AI,TMT metals energy automobiles strategies etc.Particularly noteworthy isthe establishmentofthe industry'sfirstAI Research Institute alongwith formationofanAIIndustryAdvisory Committee showcasing forward-looking layout vision.
