(Yicai) April 8 -- Annual salaries at listed Chinese securities firms increased to varying degrees last year, with nine-figure pay also returning in the industry.

Twenty-eight of the 29 listed Chinese brokers that have already released their financial statements for last year reported year-on-year growth in their average per capita salary. This compares with more than 40 percent of them cutting pay in 2024.

Citic Securities remained the highest-paying Chinese securities company for the second year in a row, offering an average annual salary of CNY812,800 (USD119,085). The highest-paid employee secured CNY19 million (USD2.8 million) last year, with four others earning between CNY9 million and CNY15 million (USD1.3 million and USD2.2 million). The five individuals were hired by the firm’s overseas subsidiaries.

Nine-figure annual salaries are usually paid to employees with special skills or those who made outstanding contributions to specific projects, Yu Fenghui, senior researcher at Pangoal Institution, told Yicai. However, he believes that this will not become a widespread, long-term phenomenon.

Despite the rebound in average salaries, executive pay continued to decline, even though at a slower pace. The total amount the above 29 listed brokers paid to their management teams fell 6.3 percent to CNY407 million (USD59.6 million) last year from the year before, according to data from Wind Information. This compares with a 34 percent drop in 2024.

Among securities executives, Qi Shi, chairman of East Money Information, was the highest-paid, with an annual salary exceeding CNY4.9 million (USD218,630).

As industry competition intensifies, retaining and attracting talent has become crucial, so securities firms are more inclined to improve the packages of low- and mid-level employees, Yu said. Executive salaries face greater pressure from regulation and public opinion, so many brokers have voluntarily lowered them to demonstrate progress in corporate governance, he added.

Moreover, this polarization indicates that securities companies are seeking a new balance point, responding to external concerns about salary levels in financial institutions while maintaining reasonable incentives, according to Yu.

There are signals that executive compensation may stabilize in the future, with a greater emphasis on performance orientation and long-term incentive mechanisms, Yu noted.

The rebound in average salaries at Chinese brokers is related to their recovery in their operating performance last year. The earnings reports of the 29 listed securities firms show that all of them saw their net profit expand in 2025, and eight of them had profit exceeding CNY10 billion (USD1.4 billion).

Editor: Futura Costaglione