Offering alternatives to China’s growing army of investors
UBS Securities’ Eugene Qian says firm plans to double its headcount in China over the next five years, with the majority of new jobs being offered in wealth management
Eleven years after it first set foot in China, Swiss investment bank UBS has become a leader in what has become one of the world’s biggest capital markets, despite its tricky access and tightening rules.
Eugene Qian, the company’s China country head and president, says in that time it has benefited particularly from its joint venture shareholding structure, set up in 2005 and approved by Wang Qishan, China’s current anti-corruption tsar and then Beijing’s municipal governor.
“Under a pilot programme, UBS was allowed to restructure the-then insolvent Beijing Securities, assume management control of the business, and rename it UBS Securities,” he said.
The arrangement allowed UBS to successfully avoid having any mainland securities company as a partner, and the need to have joint venture representatives on its board – often a tricky balancing act, that many newcomers to the sector in China have to face.
It was also able to integrate the mainland business with its wholly owned regional hub in Hong Kong.
Few foreign investment banks have achieved significant success in the Chinese mainland, since China opened its doors after 2005.
Overseas firms have to set up joint ventures with a Chinese peer, in which they can hold no more than 49 per cent, and many have blamed their struggle for control for their poor performances.