Brokerages

Goldman Sachs

2026-09-10 02:33:10

Goldman Sachs Raises Forecasts for Brokerages and Crypto Stocks After 34% Q3 Crypto Market Cap Gain

Goldman Sachs said a 34% rise in crypto market capitalization so far in the third quarter has led it to lift revenue forecasts, earnings estimates, and price targets across its Americas brokerage and crypto coverage. In a Sept. 8 industry report, the bank raised average third-quarter revenue expectations for its covered group by 10%, increased median 2026 EPS by 1%, and moved the median target P/E multiple to 32.5x from 29.5x. Median total return potential now stands at +3%. The report said trading volumes remain below the prior quarter, with industry average volume down 8% quarter-on-quarter for Q3 to date, even after a 16% rebound in August. Still, Goldman argued that higher crypto valuations are lifting custodial, staking, stablecoin, and digital asset-related revenue, giving companies with more diversified business models a buffer against weak trading activity. The bank also updated company-level assumptions for COIN, BTGO, CRCL, ETOR, GEMI, and GLXY, while raising several target prices and keeping its broader tone measured because volumes remain soft and regulatory risk is still present.

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South Korea

2026-08-30 00:09:32

South Korea's Top 10 Brokerages Post Record Q2 Profit, Shares Stay Weak

South Korea's 10 largest brokerages posted a record profit of almost 6 trillion won (about $4.356 billion) for the second quarter, but their shares have shown persistent weakness. Combined consolidated net profit for Mirae Asset, Korea Investment, Samsung, KB, NH, Shinhan, Meritz, Kiwoom, Hana and Daishin came to 5.9362 trillion won (around $4.310 billion), up 37% from the previous quarter and 141% from a year earlier, according to the Korean financial investment industry on the 29th. Despite the strong earnings, the market has not rewarded the sector. The Korea Exchange securities industry index closed at 9,804.97 on May 9, hitting its intra-year high, and then retreated sharply. In June the index dropped to the 6,400-7,400 range; in July it slipped to the 4,700-6,400 range; this month it has been moving between 5,000 and 5,500. The second-quarter numbers set a record, with both sequential and annual growth, but the share prices of these brokers have remained under pressure. The gap shows earnings strength has not translated into stock market gains.

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Taiwan FSC

2026-08-26 06:10:25

Taiwan approves margin financing for U.S. stocks via sub-brokerage, with about 930 eligible names and a 2027 Q2 rollout

Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission has approved margin financing for U.S. stocks through the island’s sub-brokerage channel, opening the door for roughly 930 securities, including about 630 stocks and 300 U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds. The program sets a 50% financing cap and requires an account-wide maintenance ratio of 160%, with implementation expected as early as the second quarter of 2027. The framework is tighter than Taiwan’s domestic stock margin rules. Using NT$1 million in capital as an example cited in the report, an investor could build a NT$2.5 million position under Taiwan stock rules, but only NT$2 million under the new U.S. stock regime. Officials cited two main reasons for the stricter design: U.S. equities do not have daily price limits, and Taiwan and U.S. trading hours do not overlap, raising the risk that margin calls or forced liquidations could occur overnight for Taiwan-based investors. Hong Kong stocks and foreign bonds were left out. Data from the Taiwan Securities Association showed that trading in foreign securities through sub-brokerage reached NT$11.3 trillion in the first seven months of the year, up 109% year over year, with nearly 73% of that flow going to the U.S. market.

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Goldman Sachs

2026-08-25 07:57:09

Goldman Sachs Sees Room in Broker and Crypto Stocks, With Prediction Markets as a Key Fall Catalyst

Goldman Sachs is keeping a cautiously constructive view on brokerage and crypto-linked equities after the second-quarter earnings season, arguing that the main support for the group is not a confirmed rebound in crypto trading but a mix of seasonal recovery in traditional brokerage activity and continued expansion in prediction markets. Since the first company in the group reported on July 21, shares in Goldman’s covered names have risen 3% on average, about 1 percentage point ahead of the S&P 500, while sector earnings beat consensus by 8% and revenue came in 2% above expectations, though expenses were also 5% higher. The bank said summer retail trading has cooled, with U.S. retail equity volumes down about 15% in July and 14% in August month over month. Still, after adjusting for account growth, volume per account in the second quarter of 2026 remained about 8% below the 2021 peak, suggesting the current cycle may not have topped out. Goldman also pointed to prediction markets as a growing revenue driver, with annualized volume up about 1,160% from January 2024 to July 2026 and a possible pickup from September as U.S. sports calendars recover and the midterm election approaches. Crypto remains the more tentative part of the thesis. Sector trading volume fell 30% in July and another 21% so far in August, extending the decline to roughly 10 months. Goldman said the recent 21% rise in total crypto market capitalization in the week before the report improves the odds of a recovery, but only a sustained market-cap rebound that feeds through to spot and derivatives volumes would mark a true turning point. Goldman’s preferred names are FIGR, HOOD and IBKR, while COIN is framed as the higher-beta way to express a crypto recovery.

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South Korea

2026-08-23 10:40:41

South Korea to tighten oversight of ELS products from next month

South Korean financial regulators plan to tighten oversight of equity-linked securities and other structured products starting next month, according to Bloomberg. The new measures would require brokerages to warn investors when products approach the knock-in level that can trigger principal losses. Firms would also need to reassess product design and sales practices when market conditions shift in ways that materially raise risk. The move comes after sharp swings in the South Korean stock market, even as retail appetite for higher-risk products has not meaningfully cooled. Following tighter rules on single-stock leveraged ETFs, part of that demand has shifted toward stock-linked securities offering high coupon payments. Data released by the Korea Financial Investment Association showed ELS sales in July reached 3.5 trillion won, the highest level since April 2023 in what Bloomberg described as a more than three-year high. Products linked to shares of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix were the main drivers of that growth.

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Unitree Techn

2026-08-14 10:42:08

Unitree IPO draws pre-listing bets from 12 brokerages and offline subscriptions from 34

Unitree Technology’s upcoming IPO has put brokerage involvement under the spotlight on both sides of the deal. According to a report republished by MarsBit and sourced from IT Juzi, at least 12 brokerages had already gained exposure to Unitree before listing, largely through funds and alternative investment channels rather than direct shareholding. Once the subscription phase opened, another 34 brokerages and their asset-management units joined the offline bookbuilding process. The report highlighted CITIC Securities in particular, saying the firm is positioned to profit from the transaction in four ways at once: as an early pre-IPO investor through Jingshi Growth and Zhongzheng Investment, as the mandatory sponsor follow-on investor, as the sponsor and underwriter collecting about RMB 145 million in fees, and as the manager of the employee strategic placement asset-management plan. It also said Unitree’s founder Wang Xingxing contributed RMB 15 million to that strategic placement arrangement. The article argues that overlapping primary- and secondary-market exposure makes the brokerage system’s overall stake in Unitree larger than what direct holdings alone suggest. With Unitree priced at 219 times earnings, a market value of RMB 60.9 billion, fundraising of more than RMB 6 billion, and expected first-half 2026 revenue of RMB 1.05 billion to RMB 1.13 billion, the report frames the deal as a shared-bet structure in which fees, locked capital, and valuation risk are tied to the same project.

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Securities As

2026-08-07 09:42:57

Securities Association of China sets 25% cap for single-bond exposure in advisory accounts

The Securities Association of China has issued new self-regulatory rules for securities firms’ bond investment advisory business. Under the rules, a firm’s investment advice should not, in principle, result in the cost of a single bond position in one advisory account exceeding 25% of that account’s total assets. The rules also lay out three exemption cases, covering sovereign and policy-related debt instruments, the first three months after a client account is first served, and passive breaches caused by objective events such as bond putback exercises or changes to the list of systemically important banks.

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Moscow Exchan

2026-08-07 05:51:09

Moscow Exchange prepares digital custody system for crypto assets, with launch eyed for late 2026 or early 2027

Moscow Exchange (MOEX) is preparing a digital custody system for crypto assets, according to multiple brokerage industry sources and people close to the exchange platform. The planned system would operate as a standalone piece of infrastructure rather than being built on MOEX’s existing trading architecture, and it would not be included in Russia’s National Settlement Depository (NSD). Sources said the operating model is still under discussion, with a launch currently expected in late 2026 or early 2027. The plan comes as several major Russian banks, including Sber, VTB, T-Bank and Alfa-Bank, have also announced intentions to build digital asset custody infrastructure. Under the proposal, each brokerage client would have an anonymous account in the custody system, essentially similar to an on-chain wallet address used to record an investor’s crypto holdings. Market participants are also weighing different execution models, including fully self-custodied trading systems and a hybrid setup combining exchange-based trading with custody handled by banks or brokerages.

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