Haitong Securities Co. is set to name its domestic securities finance chief as co-head of the Hong Kong unit, splitting the top job to tighten control after the overseas business incurred massive losses, people familiar with the matter said.
(Bloomberg) — Haitong Securities Co. is set to name its domestic securities finance chief as co-head of the Hong Kong unit, splitting the top job to tighten control after the overseas business incurred massive losses, people familiar with the matter said.
The Shanghai-based firm plans to appoint Song Shihao, general manager of domestic securities financing, as co-chief executive officer of Haitong International Securities Group Ltd. He will share the top job with CEO Lin Yong, the people said, asking not to be identified before an internal announcement.
The move follows a revamp at the Hong Kong unit that curbed expansion after it posted unprecedented losses last year. The appointment of a mainland executive mimics moves by bigger rival Citic Securities Co., which has moved staff from China to take control of Hong Kong brokerage CLSA to rein in risks.
A Hong Kong-based spokesperson at Haitong didn’t return multiple calls seeking comment.
The parent firm this year sent a working group to review operations after the Hong Kong-listed firm said it expected to post a loss of as much as HK$6.6 billion ($840 million) for 2022. The group halted expansion of its investment business due to the loss and is seeking to create “one Haitong” that connects the Hong Kong and mainland teams, Lin said in an interview in April.
Haitong International eventually reported a loss of HK$6.54 billion for 2022.
The Hong Kong operations have been trying to reduce earnings volatility stemming from trading and focus on advisory and fee-based operations such as investment banking and asset management. It has dramatically scaled back its brokerage and fixed-income businesses in the US and Europe.
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