"Sell-side heavyweight" Xun Yugen resigns, Cathay Securities Research begins the "post-integration era"?

The largest securities research force in the country—Guotai Junan Securities Research Team—has welcomed a "major" personnel adjustment.

According to media reports, Guotai Junan Securities has issued a notice regarding personnel appointment adjustments, stating that Xun Yugen will no longer serve as the company's Chief Economist, member of the Research and Institutional Business Committee, co-director of the Policy and Industry Research Institute, and director of the Postdoctoral Research Workstation. Related reports have also confirmed that Xun Yugen has chosen to resign.

This comes just over two months after Guotai Junan Securities completed its integration and Xun Yugen took on the aforementioned positions.

Xun Yugen is a senior research expert in the industry and one of the leading figures in sell-side research. Before the integration of Guotai Junan Securities, he served as the director of the research institute at Haitong Securities.

Therefore, his departure will certainly attract attention and discussion.

Equally concerning is the question of where the Guotai Junan Research Team, one of the sell-side teams with the most analysts in the industry, will head next in terms of integration and enhancement.

Xun Yugen Steps Down as Chief Economist

On the afternoon of June 24, media reports indicated that Guotai Junan Securities had issued a notice regarding personnel appointment adjustments, stating that Xun Yugen would no longer serve as the company's Chief Economist, member of the Research and Institutional Business Committee, co-director of the Policy and Industry Research Institute, and director of the Postdoctoral Research Workstation.

According to industry news, Xun Yugen has chosen to resign. However, he is unlikely to leave the sell-side industry and may join another brokerage to lead sell-side research.

As of the evening of June 24, Xun Yugen's registration information with the Securities Association of China still listed Guotai Junan Securities as his practicing institution, with a normal registration status.

One of the Industry Leaders

Public information shows that Xun Yugen graduated from Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences with a Ph.D. in Economics and holds the qualification of a Certified International Investment Analyst.

His career experience has had its ups and downs. In 2007, Xun Yugen transitioned from teaching at a university to the securities research industry. He initially worked as a researcher at Zhongshan Securities and Huatai United Securities, neither of which were leading sell-side research institutions at the time.

In 2011, Xun Yugen joined Haitong Securities, which became a key turning point in his career. He thrived on Haitong Securities' research platform, serving as Chief Strategy Analyst and Deputy Director of the Research Institute, and in 2021, he took over as Chief Economist of Haitong Securities, later also becoming the director of the research institute in 2023. His predecessor, Lu Ying, was transferred from Haitong Securities' research institute to asset management, gradually taking over key positions at Haitong Asset Management and Haifutong Fund.

In 2025, after the merger of Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities, the large teams of the two leading research institutions were merged. In April, former Haifutong Fund Chairman Lu Ying "returned" to the research business, serving as the director of the merged Guotai Junan Securities Research Institute, while Xun Yugen took on the role of Chief Economist at Guotai Junan Securities. This has just been two months ago.

"Prolific" Publications

Xun Yugen's research style is meticulous, and his speaking style is elegant, which is quite different from other analysts who have a strong "wolf-like" flavor.

His reports and research capabilities have received considerable "praise" in the industry.

From 2016 to 2022, Xun Yugen was awarded the title of Best Analyst in Strategy Research by New Fortune for seven consecutive years and received the title of "New Fortune Platinum Analyst," indicating that he had reached a "very high" industry status in the field of strategy research.

He also has multiple cases where his strategic judgments were validated by subsequent market trends. For example, in 2019, Xun Yugen clearly stated that the sixth round of the bull market in the A-share market had begun, with 2019 entering the first phase and 2020 expected to enter the second phase as an explosive period. "Technology + brokerage" is the most dominant industry in this round of the bull market.

On his public account, the latest opinion was published on June 11. The title is, "Better to be a turtle than a rabbit—Reflections on the 10th anniversary of the 2015 bull market."

He believes it is better to be a turtle and slowly become rich. Comparing the performance of major asset classes in China over the past twenty years, the long-term return of A-shares is quite impressive, with an annualized return of 9.8% from 2005 to 2024 for the Wind All A (considering dividends), ranking first among various asset classes. However, due to the high volatility of A-shares, like rabbits jumping around, there are few investors who can truly enjoy the returns of the stock market. For A-shares, a turtle-like slow rise is more needed.

Number of Analysts Exceeds CITIC

Xun Yugen's departure may signify that the previously relatively calm Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities research team is entering a phase of adjustment.

In fact, the merger of Guotai and Haitong Securities has resulted in the birth of an "unprecedented" sell-side research institution in Shanghai.

Simply from the numbers, Wind data shows that in terms of total brokerage commissions for 2024, Guotai Junan ranks sixth in the industry with a trading commission of 449 million yuan, while Haitong Securities ranks eleventh with nearly 304 million yuan. If simply added together, the commission scale of Guotai Haitong will reach 753 million yuan, placing it in the TOP2 position in the industry.

This will be second only to CITIC Securities in terms of commission scale.

In terms of the number of analysts, as of the afternoon of June 24, data from the Securities Association shows that Guotai Haitong Securities has an analyst team of 286 people, ranking second in the industry.

In contrast, CITIC Securities, which has higher commission income in 2024, currently has 268 analysts, ranking third in the industry.

An unprecedented team means unprecedented power, but it may also mean unprecedented coordination difficulties.

From the first strategy meeting after the merger of Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities, it can be observed that many analysts' titles are difficult to distinguish in terms of "level," or there may be some overlap in talent positions. For example, in the fixed income research direction, there are both a head of fixed income research and a co-chief analyst for fixed income. Both come from the research institutes of Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities.

Peak Period of Changes Among Sell-Side Experts

Of course, in this era, job-hopping is not surprising.

In 2025, with less than half the year gone, core talent is frequently moving, and several key positions such as directors of research institutes, chief strategists, and chief macro analysts in the industry have undergone changes.

For example, in January, Zheng Zhenxiang, the former co-director of the research institute at Founder Securities, returned to Guosheng Securities as co-director. In February, Sun Yuanfeng, the former director of the research institute at Huajin Securities, joined Pacific Securities as assistant general manager and executive director of the research institute. In March, Huajin Securities welcomed its new director Yang Yehui.

Moreover, Huang Yanming, the former director of the research institute at Guotai Junan, joined Dongfang Securities to oversee research operations, and his 30 years of experience will help Dongfang Securities' research business and wealth management develop in synergy.

There have also been changes among some chiefs.

For instance, Chen Guo, the former chief strategist at CITIC Securities, took on the role of deputy director and chief strategist at Dongfang Caifu Securities' research institute. Sun Binbin, the former deputy general manager, deputy director, and chief analyst for fixed income at Tianfeng Securities, became the business director and chief economist at Caitong Securities' research institute. Song Xuetao, the former chief macro analyst at Tianfeng Securities, joined Guojin Securities as chief economist.

There have even been instances of "packaged" team migrations. For example, Yin Ruizhe, the former assistant general manager and chief analyst for fixed income at Guotou Securities Research Center, led a team to join Guojin Securities' research institute as chief asset allocation officer and chief analyst for fixed income, with the Guotou fixed income team also "transferring."

In 2024, the overall commission income from brokerage firms' split accounts decreased year-on-year, forcing research institutes to optimize their talent structure and shift towards high-value-added research (such as in-depth industry analysis and global layout).

In 2025, the core changes in talent flow within brokerage research institutes will focus on the replacement of directors during strategic restructuring, the cross-platform migration of chief strategists/macroeconomists, and overall team transfers. During this period of industry growing pains, the value of research is shifting from reliance on commissions to diversified empowerment, making the integration of analysts' personal brands and platform resources a key competitive factor.

From this perspective, if we see more sell-side experts changing jobs in the future, it shouldn't be surprising.

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