Minsheng Bank Chooses Shanghai Branch Chief to Chair Wealth Management Unit

China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd. (600016.SH) has selected Cong Jun, the president of its Shanghai branch, to become the chairman of its fully owned subsidiary, CMBC Wealth Management Co. Ltd. This change comes as Ouyang Yong, the current chairman, reaches retirement age [para. 1][para. 2].

Both Cong and Ouyang have extensive histories with Minsheng Bank. Cong has previously held notable positions within the bank, including president of its Hangzhou and Xi'an branches and general manager of the small and midsize enterprise financial business department [para. 3]. On the other hand, Ouyang, who turned 60 last year, joined the bank in 2001 and has served in different city-level branches such as Wuhan, Fuzhou, and Shenzhen. At the bank's headquarters, he has held positions including general manager of the human resources department and assistant president [para. 4].

Ouyang became chairman of CMBC Wealth Management when the subsidiary was established in 2022. Zhang Changlin, who was then the general manager of Minsheng Bank’s asset management department, took on the role of president of the new subsidiary [para. 5]. This move was part of a broader trend among Chinese banks, which have been setting up wealth management units to comply with a 2018 regulatory framework aimed at restructuring the country’s asset management sector. The new regulations required qualified commercial banks to operate their asset management businesses through subsidiaries to manage risks more effectively. The transition period for this regulatory framework ended in December 2021 [para. 6].

It took Minsheng Bank about a year and a half to get the final regulatory approval to launch its wealth management subsidiary, longer than many of its competitors. Sources at the time suggested this delay might have been due to ongoing revamps in the bank's wealth management business and personnel changes [para. 7].

As of the end of last year, CMBC Wealth Management managed assets worth 7.6 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) and had products under management totaling 868.5 billion yuan, according to Minsheng Bank’s annual report. Minsheng Bank is one of China's 12 national joint-stock banks [para. 8]. In comparison, the largest wealth management subsidiaries of joint-stock banks include those set up by China Merchants Bank Co. Ltd. (600036.SH) and Industrial Bank Co. Ltd. (601166.SH), which managed 2.6 trillion yuan and 2.3 trillion yuan, respectively, by the end of last year [para. 9].

For further details, contact reporters Zhang Yukun (yukunzhang@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com) [para. 10].