by SUN Yizhen

Data from East Money Choice compiled by Jiemian News showed 42 listed brokerages earned a combined 15.53 billion yuan (US$2.14 billion) in net fee income from investment banking, up 18.1 per cent from a year earlier.

The improvement was driven largely by the industry's heavyweights. CITIC Securities, China International Capital Corp (CICC), Guotai Haitong Securities, Huatai Securities and China Securities Co. (CSC) together generated nearly half of total revenue.

The sector as a whole shook off last year's slump, with 28 firms reporting growth. But many smaller players continued to see declines, underscoring the widening gap between the leaders and the rest of the industry.

A handful of mid-tier firms bucked the trend. Guolian Minsheng Securities, Huaan Securities, Southwest Securities and BOC International (China) Securities all recorded triple-digit growth in investment banking income.

"The core drivers are equity, debt and M&A," veteran banker LI Feng told Jiemian News. "IPO activity is still sluggish, but restructuring deals are active, and bond underwriting remains steady. And given how low last year's base was, year-on-year growth looks stronger."

Wind data showed the value of securities underwritten in the domestic market reached 5.94 trillion yuan in the first half, up 26.2 per cent. Equity financing surged almost sixfold to 673.4 billion yuan, while debt financing rose 14.3 per cent to 5.27 trillion yuan. Approved M&A deals jumped more than 15-fold to 154.5 billion yuan.

IPO activity also picked up. EY partner TANG Zhehui said Shanghai and Shenzhen saw 61 listings raising 53.7 billion yuan, about 15 per cent more than a year earlier. "Industrials, technology and new materials dominated the market, accounting for the bulk of both deals and fundraising," he told Jiemian News. He also noted that new initiatives such as the "H+A" dual-listing model and the Science and Technology Innovation Board's new growth tier could support high-potential firms that are not yet profitable.

In June, the China Securities Regulatory Commission revived stricter listing standards and eased entry to ChiNext. Analysts said the reforms should help ease IPO bottlenecks and create more business for leading brokerages with stronger pipelines and cross-border capabilities.

"Headwinds remain, but leading firms are positioned to capture the next wave of equity financing," said Minsheng Securities analyst ZHANG Kaifeng.