China

Small and medium-sized enterprises are the mainstay of the Chinese economy, given they account for about 97% of all firms in the country and play a vital role in providing employment opportunities.

Every bank in China has put corporate social responsibility firmly in its sights, especially over the past few years of pandemic-induced hardships. But the Asiamoney 2022 award for best bank for CSR in the country goes to China Construction Bank for going above and beyond the standard CSR focus.

HSBC has operated in mainland China since 1865 and is a force to be reckoned with: it is the largest foreign bank in the country, operating in 50 cities, with 150 outlets and over 7,000 employees.

As a US bank operating in China, Citi has had to balance difficult political relations between the two countries to run its business, navigating trade tensions, a sparring of words between the presidents of these two superpowers, disputes over US audits of Chinese firms, and the near-halt of lucrative China-into-US IPOs.

The 33rd annual Asiamoney Brokers Poll is a Vox Populi poll that identifies the leading brokerages for equities research, sales and trading in Asia. Voters are institutional investors who represent fund management firms, wealth managers, hedge funds, pension funds, and insurance companies that trade in Asia.

The combination of China’s crackdown on technology companies, its zero-Covid strategy and its domestic property crisis have buffeted Chinese stocks this year. In order for sentiment to stabilize and for the economy to develop, reforms are needed urgently, putting more emphasis on the private sector and less on GDP growth.

The outlook for the Chinese real estate sector is bleak, with many more highly indebted companies expected to default on their bonds and loans. If the market is to recover, however, the government will need to ease more restrictions so that firms can access funding again and demand for homes picks up.

CreditEase Wealth Management