In the first half of 2026, A-share market turnover hit a historic peak, while the bond market carved out a gradual bull run amid fluctuating strength. Industry parent-company data shows securities sector revenue grew 32% year-on-year and net profit rose 23%. Listed brokerages performed even better, with 44 A-share pure-securities firms posting combined revenue of RMB 375.215 billion, up 44.39%, and combined attributable net profit of RMB 163.434 billion, up 48.86%.

Among the 44, CITIC Securities led in both revenue and net profit for H1 2026, while Pacific Securities ranked at the bottom on both metrics. China Merchants Securities posted the fastest revenue growth at 108.19%, while Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. recorded the steepest revenue drop at 14%. Tianfeng Securities saw the highest net profit surge at 549.03%, whereas Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. suffered the largest net profit decline at 23.93%. Notably, only Great Wall Securities and Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. saw negative revenue growth, and only Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. and Everbright Securities saw net profit shrink.

Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. Tops Proprietary Trading Share Yet Underperforms the Pack

Turning to proprietary trading, the 44 listed brokerages generated combined proprietary income of RMB 170.05 billion in H1 2026, up 49.28% year-on-year and accounting for 45.32% of total revenue, making it the largest income stream and the decisive factor in performance. CITIC Securities recorded the highest proprietary trading income, while Guosheng Securities recorded the lowest, with Everbright Securities next if Guosheng is excluded. China Merchants Securities led in income growth, while Guosheng lagged, again with Everbright Securities the next slowest. Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. had the highest proprietary income share, and Bank of China Securities had the lowest.

By investment return rate, calculated as proprietary income divided by average financial investments, Changjiang Securities achieved the highest return in H1 2026, while Guosheng Securities recorded the lowest, with Bank of China Securities the next lowest if Guosheng is excluded. Looking at sub-components, Shougang Securities had the highest ratio of proprietary equity securities and derivatives to net capital, while Haitong Securities had the lowest. Shenwan Hongyuan led in fixed-income securities to net capital ratio, while Pacific Securities trailed. Sinolink Securities posted the highest fixed-income to equity ratio, and Everbright Securities had the lowest.

What stands out is Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd., which, despite holding the highest proprietary income share of total revenue, saw that income trend downward, pulling overall revenue down with it. Its revenue and net profit declines were the largest among the 44 listed brokerages, sharply underperforming the sector. In H1 2026, the company delivered RMB 1.023 billion in revenue, down 14% year-on-year, and RMB 510 million in attributable net profit, down 23.93%. Proprietary trading income totaled RMB 694 million, representing 67.87% of total revenue, the highest among the 44. The semi-annual report also notes proprietary investment business income of RMB 738 million, or 72.1% of total income, down 23.5% year-on-year.

Breaking down the proprietary trading ledger, Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. recorded investment income of RMB 995 million in H1 2026, up 42.78%, but fair value gains swung to a loss of RMB 301 million, versus a gain of RMB 179 million a year earlier. Why did proprietary income plunge 23% despite a structural bull market in equities and record stock and fund turnover? The semi-annual report offers no explicit explanation, though its language points to shifts in investment strategy and asset allocation. The company noted that its stock proprietary business "moderately increased allocations to high-quality dividend assets and core assets in strategic emerging sectors, while flexibly applying market timing and refined position management tools to continuously optimize the overall portfolio."

In H1 2026, the A-share market exhibited clear structural divergence: the STAR 50 index surged 64.25%, the ChiNext rose 35.58%, the Shenzhen Component gained 19.82%, and the Shanghai Composite edged up 3.16%, while the BSE 50 fell 13.14%. Meanwhile, the bond market saw lower rate levels and a steeper yield curve, moving in a slow bull trend amid ample liquidity and slightly tighter supply. If Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd.'s proprietary portfolio missed the rhythm and failed to capture the structural moves, the revenue decline is hardly surprising.

Steepest Revenue and Profit Declines: Who Bears Responsibility?

With revenue down 14% and attributable net profit down 23.93% in H1 2026, Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. posted the largest declines among all 44 listed brokerages. In a buoyant, high-turnover market, this made it the only firm to see both metrics fall, badly lagging the industry's 32% revenue growth and 23% net profit growth, and even further behind the listed broker average. The core reason is an over-reliance on proprietary trading income, which declined despite favorable conditions, turning a dependency on market beta into a failure to keep pace with it.

According to the semi-annual report's segment data, proprietary income accounted for 72.1% of total revenue, and combined with wealth management income, the two approached 100% of total revenue, underscoring a heavy reliance on market conditions and a lopsided business mix. This "weather-dependent" model leaves the company unable to ride out cycles: favorable conditions in 2025 boosted results, but violent structural rotation in 2026 left performance trailing immediately.

The company's core management comprises two key figures: Chairman Jing Feng and President Shen Chunhui. Notably, Shen holds sponsor qualification. Since becoming director and president of Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. in June 2021, the investment banking business has remained tepid, and the "beta-dependent" structure has shown little improvement.

Investment Banking Income Plunges 70%, Recording Lowest Net Revenue and Share

In H1 2026, Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd.'s investment banking fee net income totaled just RMB 5.0983 million, down 70.34% year-on-year, while asset management fee net income fell 28.07% to RMB 4.1929 million. Although management has repeatedly emphasized a "differentiated and distinctive development path," the actual business structure still leans heavily on proprietary trading. Investment banking and asset management income are nearly negligible, offering little competitive differentiation, and the investment banking arm has also drawn regulatory scrutiny. In July 2026, the CSRC issued a warning letter to Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. for inadequate quality control site inspections, insufficient disclosure in sponsor work reports, and lax review of working papers.

Under a fully registered IPO system, regulatory demands on investment banking quality will only intensify. If Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. fails to shore up its internal controls in this area, it faces growing compliance risks. Notably, at RMB 5 million, the firm's investment banking net income was the lowest among the 44 listed brokerages, and at 0.5% of total revenue, its share was also the lowest.

Lowest Brokerage Fee Income and Slowest Growth

In H1 2026, A-share trading sentiment ran hot, with total turnover reaching RMB 317.56 trillion, far exceeding the RMB 162.68 trillion in the same period of 2025 and setting a new half-year record, according to Choice data. Wind data shows the 44 listed brokerages collectively earned RMB 103.82 billion in brokerage fee net income, up 53.38% year-on-year. Guotai Haitong led with RMB 9.942 billion, while Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. ranked last at RMB 142 million. Western Securities posted the fastest growth at 84.43%, whereas Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. had the slowest at 25.79%.

By revenue share, Guosheng Securities had the highest brokerage fee income ratio at 65.15%, while Shougang Securities was lowest at just 10.81%. Hongta Securities Co.,Ltd. thus saw both proprietary income fall and brokerage income growth lag, with total scale at the bottom. Its performance, while increasingly dependent on market beta, is finding it harder to keep pace with the benchmark. With investment banking and asset management income also minimal, the question of where the company goes from here remains open.