Global investment banks retreat from China expansion
全球投资银行撤出中国扩张

Western financial institutions in China have cut their investment banking workforce by the most in years after a market slowdown hit profits and halted years of expansion in the country.
中国的西方金融机构在市场放缓影响利润并终止了多年的扩张后，裁减了多年来最多的投资银行人员。

The cuts in 2023 came as five of the seven Chinese securities units that are part of Wall Street and European banks either made a loss or reported tumbling profits, according to recently released annual reports. The seven units employed 1,781 people last year, a fall of 13 per cent from 2022.
2023 年的裁员是因为华尔街和欧洲银行旗下的七家中国证券单位中，有五家亏损或报告利润下滑，根据最近发布的年度报告。去年这七家单位共雇佣了 1,781 人，较 2022 年减少了 13%。

China’s capital markets activity has slowed in a weaker economy dominated by a prolonged property slowdown and the fallout from rising geopolitical tension between Washington and Beijing.
中国的资本市场活动在经济疲软的情况下放缓，主要是由于持续的房地产市场放缓以及华盛顿和北京之间地缘政治紧张局势升级所导致的后果。

“Western investment banks are caught in a vicious cycle,” said Han Lin, China country director at consultancy The Asia Group. “Weak deal flow means less investment in onshore capability, which limits further deal flow.”
“西方投资银行陷入恶性循环，”亚洲集团中国区总监韩琳表示。“交易流量不足意味着在岸能力投资减少，从而限制了进一步的交易流量。”

Some banks “are running out of patience when the opportunities in India, south-east Asia and the US are looking more promising”, he said.
一些银行“在印度、东南亚和美国的机会看起来更有吸引力时，已经开始失去耐心”，他说。

International financial groups have been able to take full control of their mainland securities houses since a wave of regulatory changes in 2020. The units represent a small part of the global profits at the banks, which declined to comment.
自 2020 年一波监管变革以来，国际金融集团已经能够完全控制他们在内地的证券公司。这些单位代表了银行全球利润的一小部分，银行拒绝置评。

Banks eliminated more than 60,000 jobs worldwide in 2023, as a decline in dealmaking and public listings caused fees to plummet. The declines in China contrast with earlier hopes that their business in the country would continue to grow even if it slowed elsewhere.
银行在 2023 年全球裁员超过 6 万人，交易和公开上市减少导致费用暴跌。中国的下降与此前希望相反，即使在其他地方放缓，他们在中国的业务仍将继续增长。

Jamie Dimon, chief executive of JPMorgan, said at a conference in May that part of its investment banking business in China had “fallen off a cliff”.
摩根大通首席执行官杰米·戴蒙在五月份的一次会议上表示，该公司在中国的投资银行业务部分已经“跌落悬崖”。

Staff numbers had been rising almost constantly since 2018. Even in 2020, as Covid-19 restrictions made hiring difficult, the headcount at the units fell by less than 3 per cent.
自 2018 年以来，员工人数几乎一直在增加。即使在 2020 年，由于新冠肺炎限制使招聘变得困难，各单位的人数下降不到 3%。

At Credit Suisse’s unit, which UBS took over after buying the bank last year, the number of employees fell 46 per cent to 126. UBS agreed to sell the unit to a state-backed fund this month. Staffing numbers at UBS’s own mainland unit held steady at 383, the only one not to reduce headcount last year.
在瑞士信贷的部门，瑞银在去年收购该银行后，员工人数减少了 46％，降至 126 人。瑞银同意本月将该部门出售给一个由国家支持的基金。瑞银自己在内地的部门的员工人数保持在 383 人，是去年唯一没有减少人数的部门。

Morgan Stanley’s China unit recorded a loss for the first time since 2019, while at JPMorgan’s venture in the country, profits fell 55 per cent to Rmb119mn ($16mn). Morgan Stanley’s unit said in its annual report that the environment had been “challenging”.
摩根士丹利的中国部门自 2019 年以来首次录得亏损，而在摩根大通在中国的企业中，利润下降了 55%，至 1.19 亿元人民币（1600 万美元）。摩根士丹利的部门在其年度报告中表示，环境“具有挑战性”。

Staffing numbers fell far less at JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank than at rival China units. Deutsche Bank only owns 33 per cent of Zhong De Securities, its mainland joint venture.
在摩根大通和德意志银行的员工数量下降幅度远远小于竞争对手中国部门。德意志银行仅拥有中德证券 33%的股份，这是其在中国内地的合资企业。

Goldman Sachs China, which last year separated from a joint venture partner, recovered from a lossmaking 2022, but its profit of Rmb193mn was lower than in any other year since 2018.
高盛中国去年与合资伙伴分道扬镳，从 2022 年的亏损中恢复过来，但其 1.93 亿元人民币的利润低于自 2018 年以来的任何一年。

The number of employees in its China securities unit fell from 500 to 370 as the bank cut jobs worldwide. Some employees were moved to other units in the bank, and some stayed with its former joint venture partner Beijing Gao Hua Securities, a spokesperson said. Goldman Sachs previously outlined a plan to double its workforce in China to 600, the Financial Times reported in 2021.
其中国证券部门的员工人数从 500 人减少至 370 人，因为该银行在全球范围内裁员。一位发言人表示，一些员工被调往银行的其他部门，而一些员工留在了其前合资伙伴北京高华证券。据《金融时报》2021 年报道，高盛此前曾明确计划将中国工作人员数量增加一倍至 600 人。

Dealogic data as of May showed just $8.3bn of initial public offerings in China, the lowest total over the same period since 2009. Overseas listings need approval from China’s regulators, under rules introduced last year. Cross-border activity including mergers and acquisitions has also remained weak.
根据截至 5 月的 Dealogic 数据显示，中国的首次公开募股仅为 83 亿美元，是自 2009 年以来同期最低的总额。根据去年出台的规定，海外上市需要中国监管机构的批准。跨境活动，包括并购，也保持疲弱状态。

The performance of the investment bank units may not capture the full picture of the banks’ business in China. Some banks have other units in the country, and many use relationships formed through the mainland business to generate revenue that is booked in Hong Kong or elsewhere.
投资银行部门的业绩可能无法完全反映中国银行业务的全貌。一些银行在中国还有其他部门，并且许多银行利用通过内地业务建立的关系来产生在香港或其他地方计入的收入。

The 2023 figures are in sharp contrast with 2021, a record year for investment banks globally, when six of the seven made a profit in their mainland operations.
2023 年的数据与 2021 年形成鲜明对比，2021 年是全球投资银行创纪录的一年，当时七家投资银行中有六家在其中国内地业务中实现盈利。

HSBC’s mainland unit bucked the trend, making a profit for the first time. “This momentum has come from HSBC’s growing client base and expanded product capabilities,” a spokesperson said.
汇丰银行的内地单位逆势盈利，首次实现盈利。一位发言人表示：“这一势头源自汇丰不断增长的客户群和不断扩大的产品能力。”