Challenges and countermeasures of state-owned commercial banks after listing

The purpose of listing of state-owned commercial banks is to gradually realize market-oriented operation, promote the state-owned commercial banks to improve their management, improve the quality of business development, and finally achieve sustainable development. But whether sustainable development can be achieved depends on the actual market-oriented operation. This paper briefly analyzes the positive impact of the listing of state-owned commercial banks, and also points out a series of challenges they face, such as improving operating performance, enhancing operating transparency and volatility of the stock market. In view of this, the author proposes to strengthen the integration of various development factors from the aspects of changing business philosophy, improving corporate governance structure, improving overall risk management ability, strengthening asset and liability management, and realizing balanced and effective development of credit business, so as to improve the level of sustainable development and international competitiveness from different levels; At the same time, actively promote the construction of relevant supporting external environment.

[Keywords:] state-owned commercial banks, listing, corporate governance, international competitiveness

With the deepening of China's financial system reform and the formation of an open banking market, the pace of share reform and listing of state-owned commercial banks has obviously accelerated. Following the listing of China Construction Bank in Hong Kong and China Bank in Hong Kong and China, China Industrial and Commercial Bank also successfully listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai on June 27th. 10, Agricultural Bank of China is actively planning share reform. The state-owned commercial banks' share reform and listing is a new thing, which faces many tests. However, listing is only the beginning of improving property rights and corporate governance structure, and there is still a long way to go for reform and development. After listing, it is an inevitable choice for state-owned commercial banks to seek sustainable and scientific development by operating in strict accordance with the dual regulatory standards of capital market and banking industry, and finding effective ways to develop through hard work and solid foundation.

First, the positive impact of listing on state-owned commercial banks

Through listing, state-owned commercial banks can obtain capital and refinancing channels in the capital market, which is conducive to solving the capital shortage problem that plagues the development of state-owned commercial banks and improving the capital adequacy ratio; Realizing the diversification of property rights shares is conducive to improving the corporate governance structure and gradually realizing market-oriented operation. Strict requirements for information disclosure also improve the transparency of bank management, further enhance the ability of banks to resist and avoid risks, improve operational efficiency and profitability, and enhance their ability to participate in international competition.

(A) to promote the diversification of property rights development process

Property right is the ownership and use right of a certain resource stipulated by law, which has obvious exclusiveness or exclusiveness. Modern institutional economics also believes that by clarifying property rights, we can better realize the optimal allocation of resources, standardize trading behavior and improve efficiency. However, the existing banking system in China, especially the dominant state-owned commercial banks, had a single property right structure and empty owners before the share reform and listing, that is, the state ownership was absent. According to the requirements of property right theory, it is not difficult to understand that in order to make property right play an effective role, it must be used by authorized individuals or organizations, and all the benefits and costs of using assets should belong to the owners of assets. The ownership of state-owned commercial banks belongs to the state, but in practice there is no effective board of directors (or similar institutions) to exercise the owner's rights and interests on behalf of the state, and there are no shareholders who are really responsible for state-owned assets. Through the share reform and listing, introducing domestic and foreign strategic investors and public shareholders, breaking this single property right pattern and promoting the process of diversified property right structure is conducive to clarifying property rights, treating both the symptoms and the root causes, and building state-owned commercial banks into real commercial banks.

(B) accelerate the pace of improving the corporate governance structure

In the past, the institutional changes of state-owned enterprises in China relied more on the mandatory promotion of the government. Relying on the promotion of external coercive force, the system change will be realized in a short time to adapt to the needs of temporary productivity development; However, over-reliance on administrative compulsory intervention will easily lead to the short-term behavior of various stakeholders, which will violate the law of development of things, and eventually lead to frequent adjustment of policies, rules and instructions, which will make the executors at a loss and affect the continuous optimal allocation of resources. Through the share reform and listing, the spontaneous transformation force of the market is introduced to realize the diversified property rights structure of property rights subjects and shares, which is conducive to the separation of ownership and management rights, the separation of government from enterprises, the establishment of a modern enterprise system, and the transformation of state-owned commercial banks into real joint-stock commercial banks. On the surface, the share reform and listing of state-owned commercial banks is helpful to solve the bank's non-performing assets, increase capital and improve the ability to prevent risks; From a deeper perspective, the shareholding system reform of state-owned commercial banks and the establishment of a management system framework of "separation of management rights, ownership rights and supervision rights" can form a scientific and effective corporate governance structure, solve the soft constraints of state-owned commercial banks, and ensure the market-oriented operation of banks. At the same time, the management experience, knowledge level and understanding of commercial bank management of all property rights subjects determine the correct exercise of shareholders' rights by property rights subjects, thus realizing effective incentives and constraints to managers.

(C) the formation of a benign capital replenishment mechanism

Judging from the development history of many international commercial banks, listing has played an obvious role in improving bank management level, increasing liquidity and capital strength, and promoting bank information disclosure. Judging from the situation abroad, the listing of commercial banks is a common phenomenon, and most of the larger banks in the world have already listed. In the ranking of "Global 1000 Big Banks" published by The Banker, most of them are listed companies. Before the listing of state-owned commercial banks in China, the problems of capital shortage and non-performing assets left over from history were completely solved by means of equity reform, capital injection, divestiture and introduction of strategic investors. After listing, state-owned commercial banks should meet the requirements of clear equity, financial transparency and standardized management, enhance their ability to absorb funds from the capital market, especially the securities market, form a benign capital replenishment mechanism by means of marketization, and continuously expand their own strength through the function of optimizing resource allocation in the stock market.

(D) conducive to enhancing international competitiveness

After the reform and development in recent years, state-owned commercial banks have made great progress in many aspects, such as concept change, management level and information technology application ability, and their operating efficiency and asset quality have been greatly improved. Through listing, we will build a set of financial accounting and reporting system that meets the management requirements of modern commercial banks, standardize the operation of banks, speed up the process of integration with international practices, and meet the requirements of listing at home and abroad. We will disclose the real management information in time according to the requirements of the regulatory authorities and accept the direct supervision of the market, which will certainly enhance the credibility of the bank and expand its popularity. The introduction of overseas strategic investors by state-owned commercial banks through share reform and listing will help to enhance the recognition of international and domestic investors, enhance the confidence of domestic and foreign capital markets in the reform and development of China's state-owned commercial banks and even China's banking industry, and then help to enhance the investment value of state-owned commercial banks after listing. In particular, the participation of internationally renowned financial groups will help China's state-owned commercial banks learn advanced international management experience and technology. Methods: Promote the management mode and concept to be in line with international standards, narrow the gap with international advanced banks, improve core competitiveness, and achieve the goal of establishing a world-class commercial bank.

Second, the challenges faced by state-owned commercial banks after listing

Since China implemented the reform and opening-up policy, the pace of financial system reform has been more cautious. Over the years, the reform of state-owned commercial banks has emphasized efficiency orientation, but it has not really touched the core level of property rights system. Judging from the current situation, the entry of state-owned commercial banks into the capital market shows that they have been pushed to the forefront of reform, and it also proves that the reform of state-owned commercial banks has achieved great results. However, the listing of banks is a double-edged sword. Listing does not necessarily mean that the modern enterprise system has been established. It is impossible to introduce strategic investors into listing, and it is impossible to go public just to raise funds to replenish capital. You can't go public for the sake of listing. The success of listing is not a free lunch, but an important and crucial step in the reform and development of banks, which is bound to face a series of challenges.

(a) The challenge of continuously maintaining asset quality and profitability and improving business performance

Despite the obvious trend of interest rate marketization and excess liquidity, in recent two years, compared with the expansion of other domestic banks, the loan growth rate of state-owned commercial banks is obviously low, basically controlled at around 10%, which is largely related to their cautious lending behavior in the stage of shareholding system reform and restructuring. However, with the deepening of the system reform of state-owned commercial banks or the completion of reorganization and listing, the situation of excess liquidity may be greatly reversed, and the loan supply of state-owned banks after listing is expected to increase. The reason is that capital constraints will reduce the impact of raising funds through listing on credit behavior, and correspondingly, as a public bank, there will be greater profit pressure. Investors can't tolerate the long-term continuous use of funds by listed commercial banks for low-yield money market investment, nor can they tolerate the continuous high capital adequacy ratio and low return on capital. It can be predicted that the sufficient liquidity and relatively sufficient capital of state-owned commercial banks after the completion of the shareholding system reform and listing will inevitably promote commercial banks to issue loans more actively. Data show that in the first half of 2006 alone, bank loans in China increased by 654.38+070.5 billion yuan, an increase of 7.6%; China Construction Bank is typical, with loans increasing by 357 billion yuan, with an increase rate of 14.5%, and total loans accounting for 54.5% of total assets.

At present, the trend of interest rate marketization in China is clear, and the liquidity brought about by the accelerated adjustment of economic structure is relatively surplus. How to effectively start the credit market, strictly control and avoid risks, and balance the growth of credit scale and operating performance is a huge challenge after listing. On the one hand, state-owned commercial banks should strive to create a good mechanism to control new non-performing loans in new loans; On the other hand, efforts should be made to expand new business areas, seek new profit growth points, effectively improve business performance and profitability, and enhance competitiveness and awareness. Without the improvement of the bank's own operating performance, it is impossible to fundamentally control and digest the potential new non-performing loans and meet the requirements of the provision coverage ratio stipulated by the regulatory authorities.

(2) The fluctuation of the stock market brings great challenges to the stability of operation.

After becoming a listed bank, the risks faced by state-owned commercial banks are wider, more kinds, more hidden, more complicated and more difficult to manage. For a long time, the risk management of state-owned commercial banks has mainly focused on credit risk areas such as credit approval. Although some banks have also established a comprehensive risk management system, the gap between their comprehensive risk management ability and that of major international banks is still obvious. Whether listed commercial banks can resist the impact of stock price fluctuations is a risk that any enterprise will face when it goes public. The share reform and listing of state-owned commercial banks means the close combination of commercial banks' operating currency and capital market. Once the exchange rate and interest rate fluctuate greatly, they are likely to influence each other. These risks will affect the brand reputation, shareholders' income and their own "value" of listed banks, thus having a significant impact on their business behavior. Especially in the process of listing reform, with the acceleration of financial disintermediation and excess liquidity, the deepening of interest rate marketization, and the homogenization of commercial banks in China at present, excessive competition will inevitably lead to further amplification of credit risk and interest rate risk, and the market risks faced by state-owned commercial banks will gradually increase.

An important task of state-owned commercial banks is to establish a comprehensive risk management system that is "customer-centered, market-oriented, and strives for development through financial innovation", further expand the business space of listed commercial banks, enhance their active debt capacity, reduce or eliminate liquidity risk exposure, improve the term structure and interest rate structure of assets and liabilities, actively respond to market risks and liquidity risks, and improve the confidence index of domestic and foreign investors after listing.

(3) The challenge of meeting the requirements of supervision and information disclosure and enhancing operational transparency

According to the New Basel Capital Accord, capital adequacy ratio, supervision and inspection by regulators and market discipline are the three pillars of the New Basel Capital Accord. In order to integrate into the international financial system, commercial banks must abide by the Basel Accord and accept the stricter supervision and management requirements of the banking industry in China, so as to meet the evaluation criteria of the China Banking Regulatory Commission on state-owned joint-stock commercial banks according to seven indicators in three categories: operating performance, asset quality and prudent operation. State-owned commercial banks listed overseas also need to conduct accounting and information disclosure in strict accordance with the requirements of international accounting standards, implement sound accounting policies, and correctly handle various relationships in the process of integration with international accounting standards. At the same time, as a listed company, it will disclose information in a more unified, strict, standardized and transparent manner according to the information disclosure requirements of the securities regulatory authorities and stock exchanges in the listed places, so as to ensure the legality, authenticity, integrity and consistency of the disclosed information, which is a brand-new and severe test for the transparency of management information of state-owned commercial banks after listing. It is inevitable to continuously enhance the awareness of risk prevention and establish a prudent, steady, transparent and compliant business philosophy.

Third, the realistic choice and countermeasures after listing

State-owned commercial banks can initially realize equity diversification and standardize and improve corporate governance structure by introducing domestic and foreign investors through share reform and listing. However, based on the expectations of domestic and foreign strategic investors, public investors and the market, the success of listing can only be measured by the market-oriented operation of commercial banks, and can only be judged by the return on investment and customer satisfaction provided to investors. Therefore, in order to truly become the main body of marketization, we must have the management ability and risk management level suitable for marketization operation, and cultivate and enhance the ability of sustainable development.

(A) a complete change in management concepts

1. Establish the business philosophy of creating value for shareholders. For publicly listed state-owned commercial banks, the first challenge is the capital return requirement put forward by domestic and foreign markets, that is, the maximization of shareholder value. The traditional management mode of "focusing on economies of scale" has obviously not adapted to the new competitive environment. Therefore, listed commercial banks should establish the concept of maximizing market value, gradually introduce the concept of value management into business management, guide business management practice with the concept of value management, and realize long-term sustainable and effective business development through value management.

2. Strengthen the management concept of "customer-centered, market-oriented". "Customer-centered" embodies the inevitable requirement of modern financial services, and it is a change of business philosophy, that is, facing the market, managing customer relations with market operation, finding, striving for and cultivating high-quality customers through effective hierarchical management, and providing diversified services according to different needs of customers.

3. Establish the management concept of capital constraint. Change asset constraints into capital constraints and promote the continuous optimization of economic capital allocation. After listing, we should take the maximization of market value as the guidance, give consideration to short-term benefits and long-term strategic objectives, rationally allocate limited economic capital among various risks, management levels and products, effectively guide the business development direction, realize the optimal combination of income and risk, and realize the appreciation of bank value. At the same time, we should truly establish a performance appraisal and salary distribution system with EVA as the core, infiltrate the concept of value management into all levels, and guide them to take value realization as the basis for specific business decisions, so as to measure whether the risks and benefits of the business match, and make correct choices in customer selection and product pricing.

(2) Continuously improve the corporate governance structure.

1. Continuously promote the rationalization and diversification of ownership structure. There is still a long way to go to realize the diversification of ownership structure and promote the establishment of corporate governance structure under the modern enterprise system under the premise of ensuring state-owned holding. After listing, we should further borrow the capital market mechanism, make the property rights in corporate governance flexibly enter or exit the trading field through capital merger and control, solve the principal-agent relationship through the acquisition and redemption of equity or assets, form multiple property rights subjects, and standardize their business behavior, so as to reduce the rights and interests of non-economic targets in the overall goal and truly realize the grand goal of establishing a world-class commercial bank.

2. Continuously push forward the goal of building a "process bank". According to the principles of "simplification, high efficiency and flattening" and "customer-centered, market-oriented", we will carry out organizational reform, reorganize business outlets, solve the docking problem between product departments and customer marketing, comprehensively integrate business processes, establish a strict internal power and responsibility system, get out of the extensive business model of overlapping institutions, mixed business and low efficiency, and realize flat organizational system, comprehensive business functions, centralized business processing and internationalization of management. Establish and improve the effective contact and check-and-balance mechanism between the decision-making body mainly composed of the board of directors (including special committees), the executive body mainly composed of the general manager (president) and the supervisory body mainly composed of the board of supervisors.

3. Improve the management and incentive mechanism. It is also the requirement of management equity incentive mechanism to link managers' performance with income and realize capital return by adopting various incentive methods such as bonus, dividend and option. To link employees' performance with their income, in addition to direct rewards such as business rewards and year-end awards, employee stock ownership plan and option system should also be introduced to encourage employees, especially management, to improve their performance, and at the same time strive to create an atmosphere of respecting talents, create a stage for displaying their talents, and cultivate and consolidate their core competitiveness.

(C) improve the overall risk management capabilities

Risk management is the eternal theme of commercial banks. In the field of modern finance, whether a good risk management framework and system can be established to manage risks comprehensively and effectively is an important factor affecting the core competitiveness of commercial banks and an inevitable requirement for implementing value management.

1. Strengthen the risk analysis and early warning mechanism, and establish and improve the risk identification and evaluation system. First, learn from international advanced experience and use modern scientific and technological means to gradually establish a monitoring, evaluation and early warning system covering all business risks, and conduct continuous monitoring and regular evaluation; The second is to establish a sound auditing system, improve the professional supervision and inspection system, and at the same time control the risk to a minimum, and at the same time change the risk from being borne by the state alone to being shared by individuals and institutional investors. The third is to establish an effective capital constraint, asset-liability ratio management constraint and risk management constraint mechanism to enhance risk prevention and control capabilities.

2. Strengthen the whole process management of risks. Risk management is not only the responsibility of the risk management department, but also every link of the bank's operation and management process. Management at all levels and all employees should integrate risk management activities into business activities. This integration is based on the detailed management process, especially on the research of each post in the operation process, refining the identification, evaluation, analysis, control and reporting of related risks, formulating specific implementation procedures and steps, and enhancing the operability of the process. Risk management departments and business departments should learn from each other, promote each other, strengthen communication, * * * enjoy information, and improve their risk management capabilities through full-process management.

3. Improve the overall risk management ability and maintain the continuous value creation ability. The new Basel Capital Accord summarizes total risk management as the overall management of all business units and various risks of commercial banks. This management requires that all kinds of financial assets and asset portfolios, including credit risk, market risk, operational risk and other risks, and all business units undertaking these risks should be brought into a unified management system, and all kinds of risks should be measured and summarized according to unified standards, and risks should be controlled and managed throughout the process according to the relevance of various businesses. After the bank goes public, any change in asset quality will be truly disclosed, which is directly reflected in the adjustment of risks and returns. The quality of assets will directly affect the security of bank operations, the authenticity of profits and its reputation in the market, and then affect the market value of banks. It is necessary for state-owned commercial banks to consolidate their asset quality after listing, whether from the perspective of meeting increasingly strict regulatory requirements or promoting the steady development and benign operation of banks.

(D) to strengthen asset-liability ratio management

In the modern sense, asset-liability management is simply a process in which commercial banks plan, coordinate and control their overall asset-liability portfolio in order to achieve their established business objectives within a controllable risk level, and select customers and products accordingly. The choice of bank management direction and strategy is not based on subjective speculation. To scientifically measure the risks and benefits of each financial product, we must rely on asset-liability management to implement it.

1. Measure and manage all kinds of market risks, and establish and improve the market risk measurement system. Interest rate risk, liquidity risk and exchange rate risk are mainly caused by the mismatch of assets and liabilities and the fluctuation of financial market factors, so they are also collectively called market risk. If you take on too much market risk, or if the risk management is not good, it is likely to bring disaster to commercial banks. The primary task of asset-liability management is to establish a risk measurement system, accurately measure and scientifically manage market risks.

2. Achieve scientific expected profits and steadily increase market value. Pursuing profit is the fundamental starting point of commercial bank management and the ultimate goal of asset-liability management. However, commercial banks can not simply pursue short-term profits, but must achieve sustained and stable growth with strategic goals. At present, the international banking industry usually takes net interest income as the short-term profit target, while the market value, that is, the discounted value of the future net cash flow of the balance sheet, is the long-term profit target. With the gradual marketization of interest rates in China, an important task of asset-liability management is to find a balance between short-term and long-term profit targets on the basis of judging the trend of market interest rates.

3. Optimize the balance of assets and liabilities. Drawing lessons from the capital gap management methods of international advanced banks, we can change the size of the capital gap by adjusting the portfolio structure of interest-sensitive and non-interest-sensitive assets and liabilities, so as to achieve the goal of maximizing profits. In addition, in order to obtain comparative income in the financial market and avoid interest rate risk, innovative financial derivatives can hedge interest rate risk, which is helpful to adjust the imbalance of asset-liability structure in time according to market changes and realize the total balance and term balance of asset-liability structure.

4. Fully implement asset-liability ratio management. With the continuous improvement of China's financial market mechanism, we will begin to integrate the management structure, that is, from the current horizontal management system with sub-behavior accounting as the main body to the vertical management system with business lines as the main body, fully implement the internal fund transfer pricing system, and fully realize the centralized management of market risks; At the same time, it is necessary to further improve the organizational structure of asset-liability management, rationalize the management process, establish a business decision-making mechanism, a performance measurement system and an incentive and restraint mechanism with risk adjustment as the core, and fully implement asset-liability management.

(5) Grasp the balanced, effective and phased development of credit business.

At present and for a long time to come, credit business is still the main source of operating profits of commercial banks in China, and it is also the basis for expanding other businesses. After the share reform and listing, the rigid requirements of capital constraint and non-performing loan control have been alleviated. We attach great importance to and begin to accelerate credit innovation, expand the high-quality credit market, and improve the return on assets in supporting customer development; It is a realistic choice for state-owned commercial banks after listing.

1. Innovate the concept of credit management. We must grasp the main line of credit management, identify the market positioning and establish the concept of doing something and not doing something. At present, our country regards strengthening independent innovation ability as the key point to promote the upgrading of industrial structure and change the mode of economic growth, which will bring new opportunities for the adjustment of credit structure and the expansion of high-quality credit market in the coming period. In ensuring the existing high quality

At the same time, customers and high-end customer groups should downplay the concept of customer identity, actively cultivate high-quality small and medium-sized customer groups and expand the growth point of high-quality credit market.

2. Innovative credit products and services. Actively innovate credit products and realize the diversification and individualization of credit products. In the research and innovation of credit products, we should not only organically combine factors such as quota, interest rate, term and guarantee method according to market demand, but also provide customers with structural financing dynamic services of various credit product combinations according to customers' phased needs, and also find breakthroughs in loan approval process, loan issuance preconditions and additional services. It is necessary to improve the technical content of credit products, form core products, provide special services, expand and extend the functions of credit products, and improve the competitiveness of credit business.

3. Vigorously build a credit culture. Credit culture plays an important role in improving bank credit performance, is one of the main resources of credit business competitiveness, and is an important means to reduce credit risk and improve asset quality. The fundamental point of building a credit culture is to advocate the "people-oriented" management concept, create a harmonious relationship among account managers, credit personnel and between banks and customers, enhance the cohesion of credit teams and the sense of belonging of credit personnel to banks, and establish a new credit culture with institutionalized management, standardized operation, professional loan review, and emphasis on personnel training and ability improvement, which is a powerful barrier to prevent credit risks.

In addition, in order to speed up the financial market reform in China and promote the harmonious development of economy and finance, listed state-owned commercial banks should be built into world-class banks with real international competitiveness, and at the same time, the supporting construction of external environment should be actively promoted: First, the financial supervision function should be promoted and improved. After the listing of state-owned commercial banks, the government should break the repressive financial policy of strict separate operation, strive to promote the marketization of interest rates, separate the government's financial functions from commercial functions, and strengthen market constraints on the financial industry. In particular, China Securities Regulatory Commission and China Banking Regulatory Commission should jointly strengthen supervision and establish an effective supervision and coordination mechanism to prevent and resolve the listing risks of state-owned commercial banks. The CSRC strengthens the supervision of the stock market to avoid excessive speculation leading to large fluctuations in the stock market; The CBRC will strengthen the supervision of listed banks, standardize the behavior of foreign banks participating in Chinese banks, and avoid Ji Fuxing: the challenges faced by state-owned commercial banks after listing and its countermeasures. This requires the government to reform the existing supervision system through administrative and legal means, conduct unified supervision over financial institutions with increasingly overlapping and comprehensive businesses, create an environment of fair competition between big banks and small banks, and pay attention to the standardization and whole process of supervision procedures when implementing supervision. This can not only control the institutional risk of state-owned commercial banks after listing, but also ensure the efficiency and fairness of financial operation. Second, vigorously promote the development and improvement of the capital market. The problems of China's financial system are largely restricted by the underdeveloped capital market. With the development of the capital market, the risks accumulated in the banking system can be finally resolved. Therefore, in the process of China's financial opening, we must base ourselves on the domestic market, speed up the development of the capital market, change the financing structure and capital structure of enterprises, and then effectively convert savings into investment and improve the allocation efficiency of financial resources. The third is to actively promote research and introduce corresponding policies and measures. Clearly define the scope of corporate business of state-owned listed banks by legal means, and the state will compensate listed banks for their corporate business; More clearly define the "responsibility and restraint mechanism" related to the property rights of listed banks in China, clarify the functional orientation of state-owned property rights representatives and supervisors, and truly separate the functions of listed banks' owners and supervisors; Change the administrative mode and choose bank managers as the market selection mode, establish a scientific performance evaluation and incentive mechanism for managers, and urge managers to pay attention to the profitability of banks from the employment system and evaluation mechanism; In terms of taxation and other policies, state-owned commercial banks should also enjoy the same tax treatment as ordinary corporate enterprises after listing.