(Yicai Global) March 31 -- Citic Securities is adjusting its remuneration packages and will introduce a salary structure that will satisfy both shareholders and employees, the chairman of China’s biggest brokerage said today.

The new system will reflect the different expectations of short-term and long-term employees, those at different levels as well as those who work behind the scenes and those who front the company, Zhang Youjun said at the earnings call for the release of the firm’s 2022 financial report.

The brokerage aims to offer all staff compensation that is both attractive and competitive and that will motivate them, he said. But the Shanghai-based firm also must operate within market-oriented requirements.

Salaries and incentives will be in strict accordance with the company’s management structure, and will also take into consideration guidance from regulators on remuneration, Zhang said.

Although Citic Securities has yet to confirm whether it has cut wages or not, its financial report for 2022 shows a 37.5 percent plunge in salaries to management from the year before to CNY104 million (USD15.1 million). There was an 8 percent decline on average in staff wages to CNY822,500 (USD119,774) per person. In all, the securities firm shelled out CNY21.2 billion (USD3.1 billion) in wages to its 25,742 staff that year.

Other brokerages showed similar cuts in their annual results, confirming previous rumors that financial institutions are slashing pay. Staff at Cinda Securities experienced an average wage reduction of 31.8 percent, earning CNY399,100 (USD58,150) each on average. While salaries at China Merchants Securities slumped 32.7 percent on average to CNY463,600 per person.

Citic Securities logged a 7.7 percent drop in net profit in 2022 from the year before to CNY21.3 billion (USD3 billion) as revenue plunged 14.9 percent to CNY65.1 billion, according to the earnings report published yesterday. No forecast was given for future performance.

The drop in performance last year was due to the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic and market fluctuations, it said. However, the Shanghai-based brokerage remains an industry leader in various business segments, and logged the smallest drop in net profit among the top 10 securities firms.

Citic Securities’ shares on the mainland [SHA:600030] were trading flat at CNY20.49 (USD3) as of 2.30 China time today, while in Hong Kong [HKG:6030], its shares were trading up 0.6 percent at HKD16.90 (USD2.15).

Editor: Kim Taylor