On March 23, CITIC Bank held its 2025 annual results presentation. Regarding the bank's operational strategy for 2026, Chairman Fang Heying shared three key considerations.
First, the bank will use its "Three Strategies" as a guiding framework to continuously refine and deepen its core capabilities. Fang Heying mentioned that it was clarified at the beginning-of-year work conference that over the next five years, CITIC Bank will fully implement the "Three Strategies," which encompass six core capabilities under the themes of "Three Excellences and Three Leaderships." This serves as the central driver for the bank's long-term development.
Second, the bank will coordinate at a high level the implementation of the "Five Financial Priorities" and the building of a value-oriented bank. Fang Heying pointed out that CITIC Bank will accelerate its transformation pace. While serving the new quality productive forces and thoroughly executing the "Five Financial Priorities," the bank will systematically plan the development path for a value-oriented commercial bank in the new era.
Third, the strategy will be optimized by targeting market opportunities to build a new pattern of sustainable, cross-cycle development. Fang Heying stated that adjusting the development strategy in response to market changes is a core principle for CITIC Bank's 2026 operations.
Based on these three considerations, Fang Heying further proposed four core focal points for CITIC Bank's development in 2026.
The first is structural adjustment, which involves continuously strengthening structure-based risk management. Fang Heying emphasized that adjusting the structure is core work that the bank must persistently focus on. The emphasis on the "re-" in "reiterating" must be put into practice with increased effort and continuous advancement. By optimizing the asset structure, the bank aims to solidify the foundation of risk management and use structural optimization to enhance overall operational quality and efficiency. This work will be a long-term priority.
The second is reinforcing weaknesses by building a new growth model for liability business. Focusing on liability business as a core foundation, CITIC Bank will further develop a new liability growth model supported by payment settlements and transaction services, balancing volume and price relationships and strengthening the foundation of liability costs. Fang Heying used the phrase "accumulate steadily for a breakthrough and reinforce repeatedly" to describe the bank's approach to liability business, treating it as a foundational project for the bank's development, requiring sustained and dedicated effort.
The third is strengthening distinctive features to amplify the differentiated competitive advantages of comprehensive finance. Leveraging the unique endowment of CITIC Group's "Finance + Industry" model, CITIC Bank will continue to build its core competitiveness through a comprehensive financial services model. The bank has already established ten major comprehensive financial service models covering key scenarios such as customer acquisition through the CITIC joint fleet, government debt resolution and asset revitalization solutions, improving quality and efficiency in government-bank cooperation, integrated equity-debt-loan-guarantee financing for technology firms, collaborative expansion of capital market business, synergistic empowerment of trust core capabilities, joint innovation in products and services, integrated research and risk control empowerment, cross-border financial linkage for corporate globalization, and collaborative agency investment and trading in financial markets. Through specialized, comprehensive services, the bank aims to build competitive barriers that are difficult for peers to replicate.
The fourth is focusing on key areas to uncover quality business growth across multiple dimensions. By targeting high-value markets and quality business growth points to precisely leverage growth momentum, Fang Heying summarized the growth directions into seven core dimensions: seeking growth from capital market business, cross-border finance, investment and trading capabilities, wealth management, collaborative risk mitigation and recovery, new quality productive forces and new business formats and markets, enriching scenarios and ecosystems, and subsidiary collaboration. Through precise efforts and key breakthroughs, the bank aims to achieve high-quality growth.