Investor Service Center nominates independent director to Caida Securities, first for a listed broker

The scope of exercise rights has expanded further, as the China Securities Investor Service Center (ISC) nominated an independent director to a listed securities broker for the first time. On July 29, the ISC issued an announcement stating that it had nominated Zhang Chengfu as an independent director candidate to the board of Caida Securities, and launched a public solicitation of voting rights from all shareholders for the independent director election proposal. Caida Securities has already published a shareholder meeting notice to deliberate the independent director election proposal. This marks the first time the ISC has promoted an independent director nomination at a listed securities broker since it began exercising its third-party nomination rights.

Previously, this model had been implemented at multiple listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen main boards, the STAR Market, and the ChiNext board. Since 2026, the ISC has nominated independent directors to the boards of 28 listed companies, with industry coverage expanding to include pharmaceuticals, technology, finance, and other fields. The current case has drawn attention because Caida Securities is a licensed financial institution. Control over a securities broker is not only reflected in voting rights but is also deeply tied to shareholder qualifications and regulatory approvals, making the controlling shareholder's influence stronger than that of a typical listed company. The ISC's intervention introduces a third-party external force into the financial sector for the first time, breaking the previous convention where independent director nominations were dominated by major shareholders or management.

Due to the complexity of business chains and the diversity of product structures at securities brokers, related-party transactions often have strong concealment in areas such as proprietary investment, asset management plans, bond underwriting, and income certificate issuance, placing higher demands on the professionalism of independent directors. The performance records of independent directors will be included in the ISC's observation scope, forming a closed management loop from nomination to performance to evaluation.