Brokerage Margin Balances Hit RMB3.02 Trillion in H1 2026, Up 63.22%

In the first half of 2026, the securities firms' margin trading business showed a simultaneous rise in volume and price. The market-wide margin balance reached RMB3.02 trillion, up 63.22% year on year and 18.88% from the end of 2025; the average daily margin balance was RMB2.73 trillion, up 48.5% year on year. All 48 brokers that disclosed comparable data posted positive year-on-year growth in margin interest income for the first half. In 2024, more than 40 brokers saw margin interest income decline; in 2025, scale grew but income growth was limited. In the first half of 2026, the gap between scale and income narrowed.

Leading brokers saw a collective rebound in interest income growth. Guotai Haitong reported margin interest income of RMB5.78 billion in the first half, up 50.96% year on year, with funds lent out of RMB289.62 billion, ranking first in both scale and income. CITIC Securities posted RMB5.14 billion in margin interest income, up 39.32%; Huatai Securities RMB4.51 billion, up 28.46%; and China International Capital Corporation (CICC) RMB1.51 billion, up 31.72%. Many brokers mentioned in their interim reports pressures such as declining financing rates and intensifying industry competition, with some financing rates falling below 3%.

Growth among smaller and mid-sized brokers diverged markedly. Huachuang Yunxin's interest income rose 44.28% year on year, with funds lent out up 30.22% from the end of 2025. Western Securities' interest income increased 42.68% year on year. East Money reported interest income of RMB2.26 billion, up 41.12%. Zheshang Securities' interest income grew 36.98%, with funds lent out up 23.51% from the end of 2025. Pacific Securities and Hongta Securities saw funds lent out rise only 1.46% and 1.28%, respectively, from the end of 2025, while First Capital's growth was 4.27%.

Brokers are upgrading their margin trading strategies. In client segmentation, leading brokers have built service matrices covering retail, high-net-worth, institutional, private equity, and qualified foreign investors. Shanxi Securities offers one-on-one customized operations for institutional and high-net-worth clients, while Zhongtai Securities integrates margin trading with investment advisory services. In AI applications, Guotai Haitong upgraded its AI assistant from the underlying large model to an Agent application framework; Huatai Securities built a securities lending digital platform; CSC Financial's Polaris account diagnosis product completed its third-phase upgrade; and Western Securities launched an AI companion service.

Institutionalization and ecosystem building are accelerating. Guotai Haitong integrated into its group's ETF ecosystem, increasing qualified foreign investor margin accounts and scale. Shenwan Hongyuan deepened its institutional client service system and enriched securities lending sources. Zhongtai Securities improved its ETF financing service system, while China Galaxy upgraded its public securities pool and expanded coverage of exercise financing and agreed repurchases. Caitong Securities implemented a credit business plus multi-scenario model. In risk control, the industry's average maintenance guarantee ratio remained high: Southwest Securities at 491.88%, Soochow Securities at 337.06%, Zheshang Securities at 330.09%, and CICC at 317.5%.