Credit Suisse joint venture wins securities broking licence in Qianhai
Swiss bank teams up with Founder Securities with a view to launching securities broking services in the Shenzhen development zone early next year
Credit Suisse Group has gained regulatory approval to provide securities brokerage services through a joint venture in Shenzhen’s Qianhai development zone, the first foreign firm in years to get clearance to trade shares on behalf of mainland clients.
The announcement comes just weeks after HSBC Holdings said it planned to launch a majority-owned securities house, also in the Qianhai zone.
The joint venture with Founder Securities would add securities brokering to the equity deals and corporate bond underwriting it launched after entering the venture in 2007. Credit Suisse owns 33.3 per cent of the company, called Credit Suisse Founder Securities, or CSFS, and Founder owns the remaining stake.
The Zurich-based bank said in a statement on Thursday that it was setting up its trading outlet in Qianhai and was expected to launch services early next year.
Goldman Sachs Group launched a joint-venture investment bank with a securities broking permit more than a decade ago, the first foreign bank to do so. UBS Group followed suit but new joint ventures were frozen between 2006 and late 2007.
The business permit issued by the China Securities Regulatory Commission would allow the bank to expand its services only within the Qianhai zone. A non-compete clause in the agreement with Founder restricts CSFS to business in the zone but it would also look to serve international investors with China market services via mainland China’s cross-border investment schemes.
