As we step closer to the end of 2020, now is an opportune time to review APAC's banking performance this year. According to Dealogic latest figures, Chinese banks are not just dominant players in domestic league tables, but also well-positioned in most rankings that cover the whole Asia Pacific region.
Chinese banks are powerful in capital markets
Throughout the year, because of the tension between the USA and China, multiple "home-coming listings" from mainland companies have initial public offerings in Hong Kong, which has reinforced Hong Kong's status as a global financial hub.
Although Goldman Sachs ($446m) is leading the top of the chart of Asia Pacific ECM revenue rank, Chinese banks are taking five top spots:
Asia Pacific ECM Revenue Rank: 2020 YTD
Goldman Sachs - $446m
CITIC Securities - $405m
China International Capital Corp - $370m
Morgan Stanley - $341m
China Securities Co - $302m
JPMorgan - $283m
UBS - $238m
Credit Suisse - $237m
Haitong Securities Co - $226m
Huatai Securities Co - $215m
Chinese banks dominate the DCM market
In addition to powering in capital markets, Chinese banks are dominating the DCM market.
This is not something new - China has been dominating the DCM market across Asia for the past few years. Above all, this year, five out of the top 10 are Chinese banks, with the top two rankings being taken by CITIC Securities and China Securities Co:
Asia Pacific DCM Revenue Rank: 2020 YTD
CITIC Securities - $305m
China Securities Co - $266m
Mizuho - $220m
Morgan Stanley - $193m
Guotai Junan Securities Co Ltd - $183m
Haitong Securities Co - $160m
China International Capital Corp - $156m
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group - $149m
Citi - $144m
Nomura - $138m
Chinese bank ranked top for investment banking revenue
CITIC Securities is the number-one firm for APAC core investment banking revenue ($748m - M&A, ECM and DCM combined), beating Morgan Stanley ($728m) and Goldman Sachs ($690m).
What does this mean for hiring?
Chinese investment banks, in general, focus their hiring on Beijing and Shanghai, however, their Hong Kong recruitment rate has remained strong compared with USA and European rivals in the city.
“China on-shore headquartered banks are hiring actively in Hong Kong despite the pandemic backdrop,” says Abimanu Jeyakumar, Head of Selby Jennings North Asia at an interview with eFinancial Careers. But there’s a catch: not many of the vacancies are for front-office bankers.
“Hong Kong’s strong IPO pipeline means ECM teams are busy, but Chinese i-banks are transferring analysts and associates from their other teams to meet demand. They’re hiring instead in areas such as institutional investment,” he adds.
Be ahead of the competition
With an uncertain year, competition ahead will be tougher than usual, which means if you are looking for new opportunities there could be potentially more professionals competing with you. However, it is always a positive sign to see opportunities in Chinese banks and China's market.
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