The stock industry's performance is a tale of two extremes: 5 companies with double growth, 4 with double decline, and a hidden shift in rankings

Shareholding banks’ 2025 “report cards” are out—some are delighted, others are worried.

As of now, among the 12 shareholding banks, except for 广发银行, the other 11 have all released their 2025 annual reports. A reporter from Nandu Bay Finance and Securities (南都湾财社)统计 found that these 11 banks’ total operating revenue reached RMB 1.54T, down 1.51% year over year compared with 2024. Their total attributable net profit reached RMB 511.84B, nearly flat year over year, with only a marginal increase of 0.07%.

The split is especially clear: 5 banks—including 招商银行, 兴业银行, 浦发银行, 渤海银行, and 恒丰银行—saw both revenue and attributable net profit increase year over year (“double growth”); 平安银行, 光大银行, 华夏银行, and 浙商银行, instead, suffered both revenue and attributable net profit declines (“double contraction”). Among the other 2 banks, 中信银行 saw profit growth without revenue growth, while 民生银行 saw revenue growth without profit growth.

In terms of drivers, last year’s decline in shareholding banks’ net interest margin (NIM) narrowed across the board. Moreover, three banks saw a rebound against the trend, which helped improve net interest income overall, with the number of institutions turning downward clearly reduced compared with 2024. In addition, benefiting from the active capital market and the release of households’ wealth management demand, last year most shareholding banks’ net fee and commission income achieved positive growth, performing better than in 2024.

Operating revenue:

“You chase me, I chase you” between 兴业 and 中信

恒丰 and 民生 have the highest revenue growth rates

By revenue scale, the 11 shareholding banks can roughly be divided into four tiers.

In the first tier, 招商银行’s revenue last year reached RMB 337.53B, the only one in the sector exceeding RMB 300B. The other two—兴业银行 and 中信银行—have revenues that are almost neck and neck, at RMB 212.74B and RMB 212.48B respectively, a difference of less than RMB 300 million. Notably, in 2024, 中信银行’s revenue was still higher than 兴业银行’s; now the ranking has changed, and the revenue competition among the top shareholding banks has entered a “centimeter-level” race track.

In the second tier, 浦发银行, 民生银行, 平安银行, and 光大银行 all recorded revenues above RMB 91.91B. Compared with 2024, the revenue rankings of these four banks also changed: 民生银行 overtook 平安银行 and moved up to fifth place.

The third and fourth tiers are banks with revenues below RMB 62.51B. 华夏银行 and 浙商银行, relying on revenues of RMB 22.57B and RMB 2.57B, respectively, widened the gap from 恒丰银行 and 渤海银行 in the fourth tier—both of which have revenues below RMB 30 billion.

Looking at revenue growth rates, 6 banks posted year-on-year growth while 5 saw declines. Among them, 恒丰银行 ranked first at 5.37%, and 民生银行 was second at 4.82%. The reason these two banks’ revenue growth rates are far ahead is related to both their net interest income and their net fee and commission income increasing at the same time.

The financial reports show that 恒丰银行 generated net interest income of RMB 100.13B last year, up 8.72%. Against the backdrop of a narrowing industry NIM, the bank’s NIM grew by 4BP against the trend to 1.56%. For non-interest income, last year its net fee and commission income was RMB 18.32B, up 10.00%, mainly due to higher fee income from consulting and advisory services, as well as settlement and clearing business.

Last year, 民生银行’s net interest income was RMB 150.18B, up 1.46% year over year. As described, the growth in net interest income mainly benefited from growth in scale and the stabilization of the net interest margin. The bank’s net interest margin was 1.40% last year, up 1BP year over year. For non-interest income, last year its net fee and commission income was RMB 30.56B, up 0.42%.

Shareholding banks’ 2025 operating revenue and attributable net profit. Data source: Qiyu Yujing Tong (企业预警通) and bank financial reports

Attributable net profit:

招商银行’s net profit is twice that of the second place

浦发 and 恒丰 have the highest growth rates, in first and second place

In terms of attributable net profit, the rankings are different again. 招商银行, backed by RMB 42.63B, stands out as a clear gap above the rest among shareholding banks—nearly twice as much as 兴业银行, which is in second place. 中信银行 and 浦发银行 also both have attributable net profits above RMB 50 billion.

Although 民生银行’s revenue surpasses 平安银行, its attributable net profit lags, at RMB 8.26B—RMB 12.07 billion less than 平安银行’s RMB 12.93B. Compared with 光大银行, it also trails by the same kind of gap, at RMB 5.91B.

Among banks with relatively smaller attributable net profit scales, 华夏银行 and 浙商银行 are RMB 27.2 billion and RMB 5.5B, respectively. 恒丰银行 and 渤海银行 are RMB 75.26B and RMB 12.52B, respectively.

For growth in attributable net profit, 浦发银行 was the frontrunner, reaching 10.52%, and it is also the only shareholding bank whose attributable net profit growth exceeded 10%. Second was 恒丰银行 at 8.31%. Regarding the high growth in performance, the chairman of the bank, 辛树人, commented in the annual report: “The past five years have been five years for 恒丰银行 to recover from a serious illness, regain its vitality, and gradually strengthen its core capabilities—also five years of training, experiencing winds and storms, and gradually developing and growing.” Third was 渤海银行, with attributable net profit up 4.61% year over year.

Among the other shareholding banks, 招商银行, 兴业银行, and 中信银行 all recorded modest growth of below 3% in attributable net profit.

Overall, among the 11 shareholding banks, 5 saw “double growth” in both revenue and attributable net profit year over year: 招商银行, 兴业银行, 浦发银行, 渤海银行, and 恒丰银行. Four saw “double declines”: 平安银行, 光大银行, 华夏银行, and 浙商银行. In addition, 中信银行 saw revenue fall while attributable net profit rose; conversely, 民生银行 saw the opposite.

Net interest income:

The overall decline in the interest spread has narrowed somewhat

Three banks saw their net interest margin rebound against the trend

Although the overall improvement in shareholding banks’ performance is not very obvious, when you break down the total figures by structure, both net interest income and net fee and commission income—the two major revenue pillars—show signals of improvement.

In net interest income, among the 11 shareholding banks, 4 banks (中信银行, 平安银行, 光大银行, and 浙商银行) saw year-on-year declines, while 7 achieved growth. In 2024, 8 banks saw declines year over year, and among them, 4 had double-digit decline rates.

Shareholding banks’ net interest income last year. Data source: Qiyu Yujing Tong (企业预警通) and bank financial reports

One of the factors supporting the overall improvement in shareholding banks’ net interest income is the narrowing decline in net interest margin. Among the 11 shareholding banks, 3 (恒丰银行, 民生银行, and 渤海银行) saw their net interest margin rebound against the trend, 1 (浦发银行) stayed flat, and the other 7 declined. Meanwhile, in 2024 among these 11 shareholding banks, 10 recorded declines. Data released by the State Financial Regulation Administration also shows that by the end of 2025, shareholding banks’ average net interest margin was 1.56%, with a decline of 5BP, while the decline by the end of 2024 was 15BP.

Shareholding banks’ net interest margin last year. Data source: Qiyu Yujing Tong (企业预警通) and bank financial reports

Analyst 屈俊 from 东方证券 believes that in 2026, the decline in asset-side yields is expected to narrow. The liability side will continue to benefit from the deposit repricing window. On top of that, the industry’s self-discipline mechanism for interbank deposits will be further tightened. It is expected that there will still be considerable room for improvement in cost of liabilities, which could support the relatively resilient performance of net interest margins in 2026.

A research report from 华泰证券 also said that there are signs the interest spread has stabilized. It expects that in 2026, as the decline on the asset side narrows and the liability side continues to improve, the interest spread could enter a stabilization inflection point, which would drive a rebound in the growth rate of net interest income.

Intermediary business income:

Many banks’ net fee and commission income has warmed up

Growth in wealth management and agency business income is the main driver

In terms of net fee and commission income, among the 11 shareholding banks, 7 saw year-on-year increases. Among them, 恒丰银行 had the highest growth rate: its net fee and commission income increased 10% year over year last year, mainly because fees from consulting and advisory services, as well as from settlement and clearing business, rose.

Four shareholding banks saw net fee and commission income decline year over year: 浦发银行, 渤海银行, 平安银行, and 浙商银行. Specifically, 浙商银行 fell 16.38%, and 渤海银行 fell 22.90%.

It is worth noting that compared with earlier periods, in 2025 the overall trend for shareholding banks’ net fee and commission income shifted toward improvement. In 2024, among the 11 shareholding banks, except for 恒丰银行, whose net fee and commission income grew year over year, the other 10 all declined, and 7 of them had decline rates exceeding 10%.

The improvement in net fee and commission income is most evident at 招商银行, the “king of retail.” Last year, the bank’s net fee and commission income was RMB 50.74B, up 4.39%. Its growth rate turned positive for the first time since 2022.

Shareholding banks’ net fee and commission income last year. Data source: Qiyu Yujing Tong (企业预警通) and bank financial reports

Which specific businesses are driving the rebound in net fee and commission income? The financial reports show that many banks’ agency or wealth management business income grew significantly year over year. For example, 光大银行’s fee income from wealth management services grew 61.41% year over year last year; 招商银行’s wealth management income grew 21.39% year over year, and its asset management income grew 10.94%; 中信银行’s wealth management business fee income grew 45.17%, and its agency business fee income grew 24.77%; 华夏银行’s agency business income grew 29.74%; and 浦发银行’s agency business income grew 16.30% year over year.

A research report from 华泰证券 believes that if the capital market remains active in 2026 and growth in intermediary business income such as wealth management and investment banking is supported, it is expected that banks’ intermediary business income will continue to recover steadily. Under the trend of integrated operations, banks whose subsidiaries have complete licenses may have an advantage.

Analyst 袁喆奇 from 平安证券 also believes that in 2026, as regulatory factors from the past two years fade and the equity market repairs, banks’ intermediary business income—especially the wealth management segment—has the potential to recover.

Asset quality:

Non-performing loan ratios at 民生 and 光大 rise

浦发 and 恒丰 have been declining for consecutive years

By asset scale, by the end of 2025, 中信银行 and 浦发银行 successfully crossed the RMB 100-trillion mark (ten trillion). With this, the “RMB 100-trillion club” among shareholding banks increased from 2 members based on 招商银行 and 兴业银行 to 4 members.

On non-performing loan ratios, among the 11 shareholding banks, 招商银行 still has the best figure at 0.94%, and it is the only one below 1%. 平安银行 and 兴业银行 also have relatively low non-performing loan ratios of 1.05% and 1.08%, respectively.

The highest non-performing loan ratio is at 渤海银行, at 1.66%. The financial report shows that by the end of last year, the bank’s non-performing loan ratio for corporate loans and advances was 1.15%, up 0.04 percentage points from the end of the previous year. Its non-performing loan ratio for personal loans was 3.80%, down 0.35 percentage points from the end of the previous year. Although it declined, it remains relatively high among banks.

Shareholding banks’ non-performing loan ratios. Data source: Qiyu Yujing Tong (企业预警通) and bank financial reports

In terms of changes in non-performing loan ratios, among the 11 shareholding banks, 8 saw declines versus the end of the previous year, with 恒丰银行 down 14BP year over year. The financial report shows that as of the end of last year, 恒丰银行’s non-performing loan balance was RMB 12.515 billion, down RMB 358 million from the end of the previous year. Its non-performing loan ratio has declined for 7 consecutive years, falling steadily from 28.44% before restructuring to 1.35% now.

浦发银行’s non-performing loan ratio also fell by 10BP from the end of 2024, and it has declined for 6 consecutive years, from 2.05% at the end of 2019 to 1.26% by the end of 2025.

Three shareholding banks saw a rebound in their non-performing loan ratios. Among them, 民生银行’s non-performing loan ratio rose from 1.47% at the end of 2024 by 2BP to 1.49%. The financial report shows that as of the end of last year, its non-performing loan ratio for corporate loans was 1.24%, down 2BP from the end of the previous year. Its non-performing loan ratio for personal loans was 1.92%, up 12BP from the end of the previous year. Within personal loans, the non-performing loan ratio on credit card overdrafts rose from 3.28% by 59BP to 3.87%; the non-performing loan ratio on micro and small business loans rose from 1.54% by 9BP to 1.63%; and the non-performing loan ratio on mortgage loans fell from 0.96% to 0.77%.

At the performance release conference, 民生银行’s deputy general manager 黄红日 said that currently, the main pressure on the large retail segment comes from credit cards. Affected by factors including the external environment, some customers’ incomes have declined and repayment capacity has faced problems, leading to continued pressure on risk in the credit card business. The bank will proactively adjust its business strategy—by strictly managing new customer entry, strengthening control over existing exposures, and increasing efforts in clean-up and disposal—so that the asset quality of its large retail-related assets stabilizes as soon as possible.

光大银行’s non-performing loan ratio also rose by 2BP. The financial report shows that as of the end of last year, the bank’s non-performing loan balance was RMB 50.742 billion, up RMB 1.49 billion from the end of the previous year. The non-performing loan ratio was 1.27%, up 2BP from the end of the previous year.

At the performance release conference, 光大银行’s deputy general manager 齐晔 said that based on newly formed non-performing loan cases, the overall scale of non-performing loan generation in the corporate sector has decreased compared with the previous year. In the retail loan segment, home-related loans and consumption credit assets mainly led by credit cards face pressure on asset quality. 光大银行 has clearly identified this as a key area, set up a dedicated team, established mechanisms, and tilted resources to strengthen management and resolution. On one hand, it will tightly control the entry gate: form differentiated customer entry strategies and manage collateral rates around regional selection and customer rating; strengthen due diligence and anti-fraud management; and standardize the management of cooperation institutions, to control新增 risk at the source. On the other hand, it will strengthen overall coordination in the form of a dedicated team and supplement manpower, and improve a full post-loan management system.

In addition, 兴业银行’s non-performing loan ratio rose by 1BP to 1.08%. Although the increase is slight, it still remains at a favorable level in the industry. At the performance briefing, the chairman 吕家进 said that last year 兴业银行 carried out a risk management reform, focusing on strengthening comprehensive risk management—clarifying the responsibilities of the three lines of defense, establishing an approval officer study-and-empowerment mechanism to promote deeper integration between risk and business. Meanwhile, the bank further improved compliance and internal control mechanisms, and strengthened a linked supervisory oversight mechanism for key-area risks by bank leadership.

Written and edited by: Nandu Bay Finance and Securities reporter 刘兰兰