Brokerage Firms' Special Evaluation Methods for Five Major Financial Articles Expected to Be Officially Implemented

Securities Times Reporter Liu Yiwen

On March 24, the Securities Times learned from industry sources that the China Securities Industry Association (CSIA) plans to revise the “Evaluation Measures for Securities Firms’ Performance in the Five Major Financial Articles” (Draft for Comment) and solicit opinions from the industry.

Adjustments to Multiple Indicator Calculation Standards

It is reported that this revision changes the title from “Trial Implementation of the Evaluation Measures for Securities Firms’ Performance in the Five Major Financial Articles” to “Evaluation Measures for Securities Firms’ Performance in the Five Major Financial Articles,” transitioning from trial to formal implementation.

Specifically, the Draft Revision adjusts the calculation standards for some indicators. First, in the calculation standards for “Bond Financing in the Technology Sector,” “Green Sector Bond Financing,” “Bond Financing for Small and Micro Enterprises,” and “Private Enterprise Bond Financing,” the management of asset-backed securities (ABS) by securities firms has been added. Second, in the indicators for “Equity Financing in the Technology Sector” and “Mergers and Acquisitions in the Technology Sector,” projects for domestic companies listing abroad and cross-border M&A have been added. Third, the scope of the “Mergers and Acquisitions in the Technology Sector” indicator has been expanded from serving as an independent financial advisor for major asset restructuring projects to serving as a financial advisor for such projects. Fourth, in the “Equity Investment in the Technology Sector” indicator, indirect investment methods have been added. Fifth, the scope of the “Pension Fund” indicator has been expanded to include individual pension products and their corresponding pension target fund products.

Optimization of Related Indicator Scoring Standards

At the same time, the Draft Revision also optimizes the scoring standards for relevant indicators.

First, it broadens the bonus points for quantitative indicators. To encourage more institutions to actively promote the five major financial articles, the ranking bonus range for quantitative indicators has been expanded from the top 50 (1–10, 11–20, 21–30, 31–50, after 50) to the top 60 (1–10, 11–20, 21–40, 41–60, after 60).

Second, it adjusts the scoring method for the sustained investment growth rate. To promote differentiated and specialized development of securities firms, the scoring method for “continuous resource investment” has been changed from overall growth rate to specialized growth rate, allowing evaluated companies to focus resources on niche areas.

Finally, it standardizes the scoring and grading rules for indicators. The bonus point logic for each detailed indicator has been unified, and the related scores have been reasonably optimized. When indicator scores are the same, the difference between each grade is generally maintained consistently.

Additionally, the Draft Revision removes some evaluation indicators. To align with the China Securities Regulatory Commission’s (CSRC) “Classification Evaluation Regulations for Securities Firms” and avoid duplication, the detailed indicator “Securities Technology Awards” under the “Digital Finance” category has been deleted. Correspondingly, the score for the “Digital Finance” indicator’s “Securities Firm Digital Maturity” has been increased from 8 to 10 points. After the adjustment, the total number of evaluation indicators has been reduced from 14 to 13, with the total score remaining unchanged.

First Trial Evaluation Completed

To better motivate securities firms to leverage their resources and business characteristics to effectively promote the five major financial articles, and based on the experience from the first trial evaluation, as well as feedback from regulatory authorities and industry organizations, the CSIA plans to revise the “Evaluation Measures for Securities Firms’ Performance in the Five Major Financial Articles (Trial).”

By 2025, to implement the “Implementation Opinions on Promoting the Five Major Financial Articles in Capital Markets” and the “Classification Evaluation Regulations for Securities Firms,” and to guide securities firms in effectively promoting the five major financial articles, the CSIA, under the guidance of the CSRC’s Institutional and Comprehensive Departments, formulated the “Trial Evaluation Measures for Securities Firms’ Promotion of the Five Major Financial Articles,” and completed the first trial evaluation based on this.

Overall, the evaluation results objectively reflect the ability and effectiveness of various securities firms in practicing the five major financial articles. Industry organizations also noted that the coverage of evaluation indicators related to the five major financial articles could be further expanded. To better meet the needs of the industry’s differentiated and specialized development during the “14th Five-Year Plan” period, and to enhance the function of the special evaluation, it is necessary to further revise and improve the “Trial Evaluation Measures.”

It is understood that the latest evaluation indicators in the Draft Revision allocate 90 points for quantitative indicators, 10 points for qualitative indicators, and 5 bonus points. Quantitative indicators include Technology Finance (50 points), Green Finance (10 points), Inclusive Finance (10 points), Pension Finance (10 points), and Digital Finance (10 points).

By September 2025, the CSIA will complete the first trial evaluation. During this process, the CSIA organized data collection and review for 107 participating securities firms (consolidated basis), and provided one-on-one feedback to each firm through the data reporting system to confirm evaluation data. The ranking of major quantitative indicators was publicly disclosed within the industry. According to the evaluation plan, the results of this promotion of the five major financial articles will be incorporated into the 2025 securities firm classification evaluation, with scores converted proportionally (full score of 100 points scaled to 1 point). To enhance the motivational and guiding role of the evaluation, and to ensure fairness and reasonableness, firms with only the basic score (no additional points) will not receive extra points in the classification evaluation.