Huachuang Securities: Rule of Law Cooperation and Policy Drive Resonate, Entering a New Journey Health Technology Group where Compliance Takes Precedence and Survival of the Fittest.

Huachuang Securities released a research report stating that the systematic increase in compliance costs will accelerate the survival of the fittest in the industry, and market share will concentrate towards leading institutions with advanced compliance indicators and strong capital strength. It is suggested to focus on targets with strong derivatives pricing capabilities and compliance risk control advantages. With the implementation of the new and old differentiation and the 18-month transition period arrangements, the industry will bid farewell to low-level competition and enter a new era of high-quality development. Main points of Huachuang Securities: Events On April 17, 2026, the China Securities Regulatory Commission issued a notice seeking opinions on the "Management Measures for Futures Companies (Draft for Soliciting Opinions)" and the announcement on the implementation of related matters concerning the "Management Measures for Futures Companies" (Draft for Soliciting Opinions). Background: Resonance of Legal Coordination and Policy Drive The concentration of the futures industry is on the rise. As of the end of March 2026, there were a total of 150 futures companies in China. Looking at industry data from 2015 to 2025, the futures market is experiencing a transition from "decentralized competition" to "intensive governance," with the core logic being the establishment of a capital red line on the asset side and the repair of profits for surviving beneficiaries. On the asset side: The CR10 of net assets has increased from 30.7% to 67.2%, and this concentration jump is essentially accompanied by a trend of shrinking the number of disclosure institutions from 148 to 34. On the profit side, with a stable sample size of over 20 companies, the CR10 of net profit has surpassed the 100% threshold in multiple years (i.e., top profits covering the industry's net losses), revealing the survival dilemma of long-tail institutions under the homogenization of channel business and the increase in compliance costs. The draft for soliciting opinions is the most critical institutional supplement after the implementation of the "Futures and Derivatives Law," and its core logic shifts from the early "scale-oriented" to "legalization, specialization, and reduced development." By reshaping the business landscape, raising the entry barriers, and strictly controlling investment direction, the policy is forcibly driving the industry to return from a "channel model" to a "risk management main business," and the industry ecology will undergo a significant reshuffle. By translating the decisions made by the Party Central Committee and the State Council into specific regulatory requirements, the regulatory aim is to push financial institutions to focus on their core business and deviate from irregular development. In addition, summarizing the industry's risk disposal experience in recent years, plugging regulatory loopholes, and solidifying effective practices in routine supervision are the inevitable choices to achieve high-quality development of the futures market. Key Comments: Reshaping the Industry Competition Landscape The threshold for basic operations has been significantly raised, and the hard constraint on registered capital establishes a "stronger get stronger" pattern. The draft for soliciting opinions clearly states that the core financial businesses such as market making and derivatives trading, which were originally operated by risk management subsidiaries, will all be included in the operation of the futures company. At the same time, the new regulations significantly raise the minimum registered capital for carrying out basic brokerage business from 30 million yuan to 100 million yuan, and stipulate that the registered capital should be "no less than 500 million yuan" after adding any one of asset management, market making, derivatives trading, and other businesses. This poses a huge survival pressure for medium and small futures companies, as the path to rapid expansion through leverage business is basically cut off, and the future may turn to regional or professional fields, while leading institutions with capital advantages and compliance foundation will further monopolize the top-tier license dividends. Standardizing fees and commission rates effectively optimize the industry's development ecology. To address the long-standing issue of low-price competition, the new regulations strengthen price control from a systemic level. Article 53 of the draft for soliciting opinions clearly stipulates: "Futures companies shall publicize the fee standards such as commissions and fees charged in business premises, company websites, and the China Futures Supervision website in accordance with the regulations of the China Securities Regulatory Commission. Futures companies shall not carry out business at fees below the service cost." This introduction of a compliance bottom line will effectively curb industry-revolving price wars and steer competition towards service quality and professional risk management capabilities, conducive to improving the industry's overall profit quality and self-discipline ecology. Asset management business enters a period of regulatory pain of "shrinking first, then developing." To correct the trend of channelization in asset management business, the draft for soliciting opinions sets extremely high hard constraints on investment scope, clearly stipulating that "the scale of investment in non-futures categories shall not exceed 5 times the scale of investment in futures and derivative categories." This proportion limit means that a large amount of asset management scale deviating from the main business will face pressure to decrease in the short term, but in the medium and long term, it will drive the asset management business back to the essence of derivative strategies. Penetrative supervision and raising entry barriers build a robust risk barrier. The draft for soliciting opinions significantly tightens the requirements for shareholders and actual controllers, specifically requiring that "futures companies shall explain the equity structure according to the regulations of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, penetrating to the ultimate beneficiaries." At the same time, the clause stipulates that "futures companies shall clearly state in their articles of association that shareholders and actual controllers shall not intervene in the company's business management activities in violation of regulations, nor shall they harm the legitimate rights and interests of the company and customers." By comprehensively raising the entry barriers for obtaining licenses and expanding business, the regulatory authority is constructing a comprehensive and comprehensive monitoring system, which provides significant protection for enterprises with existing advantages, enhancing the market discourse power of compliant leading institutions. Risk Warning: Slowdown in corporate hedging demand due to fluctuations in the real economy; Systemic risks in the industry triggered by drastic fluctuations in commodity prices; Significant decrease in trading volume of futures varieties affecting commission income; Implementation strength or pace of new regulations may be less than expected.