Industry Observation | Huatai Securities Zhou Yi: Restarting, from AI Reconstruction to Organizational Evolution

Today, the financial industry stands at the intersection of technological transformation and global restructuring. AI is reshaping the logic of the industry, China’s leading industries are deeply integrated into global division of labor, and with the interest-rate policy “center” shifting downward and the growth model switching, the industry’s underlying logic is being rewritten even further. In this transformation, Haitong Securities (Haitong) has set off anew with the courage to do so, anchoring on three key pillars—AI, global expansion, and organizational reform—so that it can achieve steady growth in performance while completing a comprehensive upgrade from business to mindset.

In his letter to shareholders, Haitong Securities CEO Zhou Yi provides a reference sample for the industry’s transformation by decoding Haitong Securities’ strategic practices for navigating industry cycles.

Dear Shareholders:

Every road worth setting out on again is not marked on the old map.

In 2025, the pace of change exceeded the expectations of most people. On the one hand, technology waves represented by AI are accelerating their penetration across the entire industrial chain—from computing-power infrastructure to end application scenarios—so that technical variables are rewriting the industry’s competitive rules. On the other hand, China’s leading industries are integrating into global division of labor with unprecedented breadth, shifting from exporting manufacturing capabilities to establishing comprehensive foundations across brands, R&D, and supply-chain networks. Against the macro backdrop of continued downward movement in the interest-rate policy “center” and a deep conversion of the growth model, the underlying logic of financial services is also being rewritten—industrial depth, a global perspective, and the technological foundation are becoming core capabilities for navigating cycles. This is our basic judgment about the industry’s future, and also the starting point for all strategic choices.

In the face of this transformation, we have once again chosen to set out anew—not by negating the past, but by taking a higher vantage point to review ourselves, and by driving reform with greater courage. We seek breakthroughs across three dimensions: business logic, service chains, and organizational culture; we anchor our long-term direction amid uncertainty; and we accumulate the capability to navigate cycles through change. In 2025, the company achieved steady growth in operating performance, and its overall strength continued to solidify its leading position in the industry. As of the end of 2025, the Group’s total assets were RMB 1,077.348 billion, and net assets attributable to shareholders of listed companies were RMB 206.939 billion. In 2025, the Group recorded operating revenue of RMB 35.810 billion, and net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies of RMB 16.383 billion. The company’s MSCI ESG rating continues to maintain the AAA level, the highest grade for MSCI’s rating of global investment banks.

**** From tools to thinking—using AI to redefine an investment bank ****

An internal question we often discuss is: what is the most irreplaceable value of an investment bank? Our answer is the ability to price risk assets. Behind it lies deep understanding of industrial logic, broad coverage of high-quality assets, the courage to validate valuations with hard cash, and the ability to create financial products by pairing different assets with risk and match them efficiently with global investors. In the past, these capabilities relied heavily on individual experience. As industry transformation accelerates, and information density grows exponentially, relying on human effort alone is no longer sufficient to cover the necessary depth and breadth. The transformation brought by AI is not a simple overlay on existing processes; it is a fundamental reconfiguration of how value is created. It allows us to break beyond individual boundaries, bringing together the cognition and data scattered across different business lines, regional teams, and different time nodes into a unified, continuously iterating intelligent foundation. This enables a qualitative leap in the depth and timeliness of assessing asset value, as well as in the breadth and precision of serving diverse client groups.

In 2025, we did two things. First, we built an AI-driven intelligent investment research system and a data capability foundation covering the entire company. Taking industry tracks such as new energy, intelligent driving, and innovative pharmaceuticals as breakpoints, we integrated the industrial data and professional knowledge systems accumulated across investment research, investment banking, trading, and risk control—enabling dynamic tracking and in-depth analysis of the whole industrial chain. In this way, every transaction, every piece of research, and every service judgment can be structured and reused. Second, using customer-facing trading tools as the driver, we compelled the entire business chain to become AI-enabled and fully connected. The “AI Yue Li” APP released in October 2025 is an AI-native financial trading terminal introduced first in the industry. From the underlying level, it reshaped the way investors interact with financial services. Its significance lies not only in innovating service models, but also in pulling together comprehensive connectivity among back-end data governance, investment research, trading, and risk control systems. AI reconstruction is by no means a one-day effort. But this is not a multiple-choice question—it is a required question. Making data-driven industrial cognition, intelligent customer service, and integrated business coordination the company’s core competitive capabilities.

**** From going global to taking root—integrating into global value chains ****

The globalization of Chinese companies is undergoing a qualitative shift—not simply stepping out of the country, but truly becoming enterprises that originate in China and operate globally. Global investors’ willingness to allocate Chinese assets is also shifting from watch-and-wait testing to active deployment. This process urgently requires investment banks with international capital operation capabilities and a deep understanding of China’s industries to provide comprehensive financial support. Haitong is committed to being such a partner—grounded in a profound understanding of China’s industries, supported by global professional capabilities, and accompanying Chinese companies as they move into the world.

The listing of H shares in 2015 was the starting point of Haitong’s internationalization. Over the following decade, step by step, it gradually established a global value-chain system covering Asian and European and American markets, and it accelerated expansion into more emerging markets. In the process of going global, we confront the gap with international investment banks. We build core capabilities with cross-border transactions as the breakthrough point, and we continue to invest in global trading platforms, cross-border risk control systems, and the development of localized teams. Relying on our deep understanding of Chinese enterprises and Chinese assets, we have pursued a distinctive international development path with Haitong’s own characteristics.

In 2025, the footprints along this path became even clearer. In terms of corporate client service, we fully seized the opportunity of the rebound in the Hong Kong IPO market. We sponsored 22 Hong Kong IPO projects, ranking third in the market; we participated in 8 Hong Kong IPO projects among the top ten; and we supported well-known companies in areas such as biopharmaceuticals, intelligent manufacturing, and new energy vehicles to list on the Hong Kong market one after another. In terms of institutional client service, we actively expanded the global business network and extended global asset-allocation capabilities. Our global trading platforms are already connected to major financial hubs including Hong Kong, New York, London, and Singapore. Key businesses such as equity derivatives and FICC remain market-leading, and our Hong Kong dollar–RMB dual counter market-making achieves full coverage of underlying assets. In terms of wealth client service, we actively promoted integrated domestic and overseas operations for private banking clients and continued to expand the layout of overseas products and services. Our Cross-Border Wealth Management Connect Southbound Connect product matrix already covers public funds and bond categories in multiple currencies, and global asset-allocation services continue to deepen. Behind these steps is a global service network taking shape—enabling Haitong to provide trustworthy financial services in any market and any time zone where clients need them.

**** From inertia to innovation—reshaping organizational culture ****

Over more than 30 years of development, every transformation at Haitong—behind each instance of transformation beyond expectations—has been an update to its cultural genes. With the company’s current scale and size, moving forward requires not only refinement at the business level, but also deeper evolution of organizational culture. In 2025, we used straightforward writing to re-clarify Haitong’s cultural consensus and return to the most fundamental questions. What is the value we exist to create? It is to create truly professional value for clients—to make client needs the starting point for everything we do. What determines how far we can go? It is professionalism: using professional people to do professional work; pursuing top-tier market positions in every business; and forging differentiated competitive strengths with technology and innovation. What is the company’s most irreplaceable asset? It is people. This answer is more important than the first two. Mechanisms that respect professionalism and encourage creativity help talent stand out; an open culture invites outstanding global talent to gather here; and diverse teams bring business resilience and depth.

Culture is not slogans hung on the wall; it is a strategic execution system that determines how each person thinks, decides, and acts. This understanding is especially critical in the AI era. When technology can complete more and more standardized tasks, competition between organizations ultimately returns to a contest of people’s creativity. We propose “from tool-users to people who use tools”—not making people mere appendages of machines, but returning them to the work of truly creating value: independent judgment about industry trends, deep understanding of client needs, creative solutions to complex problems, and building trust relationships between people. These are things AI cannot replace—and they are also the most essential value of financial services.

In a journey of thirty-five years, what continuously changes is the tools and technology; what never changes is every Haitong person’s original intention to serve the real economy and create long-term value for clients. There is no new continent to be found on the old map. Reconstructing the business with AI thinking, expanding boundaries with a global perspective, and unleashing people’s creativity through cultural innovation together form Haitong’s strategic cornerstones for the next three to five years. True competitiveness does not lie in the performance numbers of any one year, but in whether an ability system oriented toward the future has been established. The road ahead is full of uncertainty, but uncertainty has never been a reason to stop—it is the best opportunity window for those who press forward. Haitong Securities will continue to embrace reform with a practical mindset, serve clients with a professional mindset, face the market with a sense of敬畏, and co-create sustainable long-term value with all parties.