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On November 9, the first trading day after the legal-entity switch at Guolian Minsheng Securities Company Limited (GLMS SEC), the market opened smoothly, trading across the whole market ran without disruption, and end-of-day clearing and settlement verification was fully consistent. This marks the successful completion of the securities industry's first two-way legal-entity switch between wealth management business and proprietary trading business, known as the "dual legal-entity switch." Combined with the earlier launch of futures subsidiary integration, this brokerage merger project, the first approved and implemented after the release of the new "Nine National Articles," has now completed the full integration of its securities business. The parent-subsidiary structure of "one headquarters plus eight subsidiaries" has officially taken shape, marking a new stage of group-wide coordinated development.
Industry First: 2.15 Million Clients Shift Tracks Without Feeling It, Breaking New Ground With a Two-Way Legal-Entity Switch
According to the official WeChat account of GLMS SEC, this legal-entity switch covered 89 branches and 2.15 million brokerage clients, while simultaneously changing 483 trading units, cross-three-location settlement paths and bank-securities contracting relationships with 19 depository banks. The switch officially began at the end of the day on November 6, and by the first trading day on November 9, it had achieved zero business interruption and zero client perception.
"The hardest part of a legal-entity switch is not system transformation, but making sure clients do not notice anything," a person close to the company said. For investors, account numbers, trading software and held assets all remain unchanged, and the trading experience is exactly the same. What changed happened in the back office: the legal entity responsible for agency trading and settlement completed an overall change, like a high-speed train switching tracks while the train does not stop and passengers remain undisturbed.
Unlike the absorption mergers or regionally established full-license regional subsidiaries commonly used in past brokerage mergers, this "dual legal-entity switch" by GLMS SEC breaks away from the traditional path and divides legal entities by business attributes. The wealth management business was transferred as a whole to Minsheng Securities, creating a light-capital, specialized wealth management operating platform. The parent company focused on securities proprietary trading, securities market making and other businesses. As a result, the company explored and formed an innovative integration path featuring "business separation, legal-entity division, risk isolation and governance reconstruction," which is highly consistent with regulatory guidance for securities firms to focus on their main businesses and strengthen risk isolation.
Structure Takes Shape: "One Headquarters Plus Eight Subsidiaries" Completes Its Final Piece
The conclusion of the dual legal-entity switch marks the full implementation of securities business integration at GLMS SEC. Before that, futures subsidiary integration had already started. According to the company's previous announcement, in line with the requirements of China Securities Regulatory Commission approval No. 1911 of 2024 regarding the integration of Guolian Futures and Minsheng Futures, Guolian Futures planned to absorb and merge Minsheng Futures through a share swap. Guolian Futures' controlling shareholder would change from Guolian Group to Minsheng Securities, and the company would include Guolian Futures in its consolidation scope in accordance with accounting standards.
At this point, the group structure of GLMS SEC, consisting of "one headquarters plus eight subsidiaries," has fully taken shape: the parent company focuses on proprietary trading, market making and other businesses, while wealth management, asset management, investment banking, public funds, alternative investment, direct investment private equity investment, Hong Kong business overseas business and futures business are respectively undertaken by specialized subsidiaries.
Since the beginning of this year, the path for building this structure has been clear. On August 10, assets related to the wealth management business were transferred to Minsheng Securities, and Minsheng Securities' registered capital was reduced from 11.510 billion yuan to 1.510 billion yuan, achieving a supporting adjustment in which "capital follows business transfer." On August 29, the plan for wholly owned subsidiary Guolian Innovation to absorb and merge Minsheng Investment was approved by the board of directors, optimizing the layout of the alternative investment business. On October 29, the merger plan between Guolian Minsheng Capital and Minsheng Equity was confirmed by the board of directors, completing the integration of private equity subsidiary businesses. Entering November, futures subsidiary integration was launched and the dual legal-entity switch was successfully completed, fully solidifying the group foundation.
Integration Dividends: Performance Continues High Growth, Single-Quarter Countertrend Double Increase Shows Resilience
Behind the landing of the structure is the continued realization of integration dividends. The company's 2026 third-quarter report shows that in the first three quarters it achieved operating revenue of 6.739 billion yuan, up 11.61% year on year; net profit attributable to the parent company of 2.108 billion yuan, up 19.59% year on year; and growth in non-recurring net profit of 21.78%. Against the backdrop of generally pressured single-quarter performance among listed brokerages in the third quarter, GLMS SEC recorded single-quarter revenue of 2.169 billion yuan, up 7.02% year on year, and single-quarter net profit of 693 million yuan attributable to the parent company, up 8.98% year on year, achieving a countertrend double increase and demonstrating operating resilience after integration.
Specific business lines also showed many highlights. According to public reports, by the end of the third quarter, the company ranked fourth in the industry by number of IPO projects under review and by number of IPO applications filed during the year, and ranked first in the industry by number of new Third Board listings and number of applications for Beijing Stock Exchange IPOs. In research business, according to Wind data, in the first half of 2026 the company's brokerage commission income was 344 million yuan, up 89.73% year on year, with a market share of 3.94%, ranking eighth in the industry and rising to eighth in industry ranking.
Sample Significance: Answering With a "Dual Legal-Entity Switch" and Offering a "Guolian Minsheng Path" for Brokerage M&A
Since the release of the new "Nine National Articles," market-oriented brokerage mergers and acquisitions have continued to heat up, but "mergers are easy, integration is hard" has remained an industry issue to be solved. License consolidation does not equal capability consolidation, and consolidated statements do not equal realized synergies. The answer from Guolian Minsheng Securities Company Limited is to push integration to the deepest legal-entity level: the two major segments of wealth management and proprietary trading switched legal entities in both directions, using a "track switch in motion" to complete the substantive reconstruction of separate operations between parent and subsidiaries.
The sample value of this switch is first reflected in methodology. With 89 branches, 2.15 million brokerage clients, 483 trading units and bank-securities contracting relationships with 19 depository banks, the migration was completed in one go under the established rhythm of full-network testing, connectivity joint debugging and first-day market opening, with the four links of trading, settlement, funds and contracts connected simultaneously and with zero interruption throughout. This full-process approach, covering plan demonstration, regulatory communication, system switching and client protection, provides a rare "implementation manual" for subsequent large-scale brokerage mergers.
Deeper changes occurred in the governance structure. By dividing legal entities according to business attributes, a legal-entity-level risk firewall has been set up between parent and subsidiaries, capital is precisely matched with business, and boundaries of rights and responsibilities are clearly drawn, in line with regulatory guidance for securities firms to focus on their main businesses and strengthen risk isolation. Compared with the industry's common absorption mergers or regional subsidiaries established by geography, this path of "business separation and legal-entity division" offers a new way of thinking for large and medium-sized securities firms seeking group-based operations through M&A.
The conclusion of the legal-entity switch is not the end, but the starting point of group-based operations. With the full landing of the "one headquarters plus eight subsidiaries" structure, the integration narrative of GLMS SEC is shifting from "coming together" to "becoming stronger." For peers observing and following up on M&A, this practical experience, earned through the "unfelt migration" of 2.15 million clients, may be precisely the part of this round of brokerage M&A with the greatest reference value.