中国上市公司大股东热衷于股票质押
中国股东加大了通过质押股票融入资金的力度，这增加了证券公司的收入，但也带来在市场急剧下滑时引发连锁反应的风险。
Shareholders in 317 Shanghai and Shenzhen-listed companies had pledged shares worth at least 40 per cent of those companies by December 18, up from 224 companies on the same date a year earlier, according to Wind Info.
万得资讯(Wind Info)的数据显示，到12月18日，有317家沪深上市公司的股东已质押了这些公司至少40%的股票，高于去年同期的224家。
Share-pledging is especially common for small and mid-cap companies, where a single shareholder often owns a large stake. Controlling shareholders sometimes reinvest the proceeds into company projects or buy additional company shares on the secondary market to boost the share price.
在单一股东经常持有高比例股份的中小市值公司，质押股票的做法尤为常见。控股股东有时把质押所得资金重新投入到公司项目中，或者在二级市场上购入公司的更多股票以提振股价。
“Companies use ‘market-value management’ to push up the share price, pledge the shares to brokers, and then take the money and run,” said Hao Hong, head of research at Bocom International in Hong Kong.
“公司利用‘市值管理’推高股价，把股票质押给券商，然后拿了钱就跑，”驻香港的交银国际(Bocom International)研究主管洪灏说。
Offering loans against pledged shares has also become big business for Chinese investment banks, which have long sought new business lines to reduce their reliance on trading commissions.
接受股票质押、提供贷款也已成为中国券商们的一项重要业务。长期以来，它们一直在开拓新的业务线，从而降低自己对佣金收入的依赖。
Interest income from the sale and repurchase of financial assets — a category that mostly comprises loans against pledged shares — rose by 25 per cent in the first half of this year from the same period in 2016 at 29 mainland-listed brokerages, buffering a 2 per cent decline in overall operating income.
在29家中国内地上市券商，今年上半年出售与回购金融资产——主要包括接受股票质押、提供贷款的业务类别——的利息收入，较2016年同期增加了25%，缓解了总体营业收入下滑2%的冲击。
But analysts warn that share-pledging can amplify a market downturn. If a company’s share price drops below a designated stop-loss level, the lender will liquidate the pledged shares, pushing the share price down even further.
但分析师们警告称，股票质押可能会放大股市下跌的风险。如果一家公司的股价跌破平仓线，那么资金出借方将变卖被质押股票，推动股价甚至进一步下跌。
Liquidation of pledged shares was seen as a likely contributor to a steep drop in Hong Kong’s small-cap Growth Enterprise Market in late June, when 17 stocks fell by more than 40 per cent in a single day.
在今年6月下旬的香港小盘股创业板(Growth Enterprise Market，简称GEM)暴跌中，变卖被质押股票被视为一条可能的原因。当时，有17只股票在一天内下跌逾40%。
Jia Yueting, founder and largest shareholder in troubled technology and media group LeEco, has pledged Rmb39bn of shares in the group’s Shanghai-listed unit, Leshi Internet Information, to 13 different financial institutions, according to Wind Info. Mr Jia largely used the funds to finance his aggressive expansion into areas such as electric cars, movie production and mobile phones.
万得资讯的数据显示，陷入麻烦的技术与媒体集团乐视(LeEco)的创始人、最大股东贾跃亭把集团旗下上市公司乐视网价值390亿元人民币的股票质押给了13家不同的金融机构。贾跃亭主要用这笔钱来资助其咄咄逼人的扩张，进入电动汽车、电影制作和手机等领域。
The institutions now have a problem — trading in Leshi’s shares has been suspended since April. Given the company’s struggles, the stock is probably worth less than the Rmb15.3 per share price at which it last traded.
这些机构如今面临着一个问题——乐视网股票自4月以来已停牌。鉴于乐视网的艰难处境，目前其每股价值很可能低于停牌前15.3元人民币的股价。
In September China’s two main bourses published draft rules that would tighten regulation on share pledging. One provision caps the value of loans secured by shares at 60 per cent of the market value of the pledged shares, ensuring a buffer that will protect the lender in case a share price falls.
今年9月，中国两大交易所发布了将收紧股票质押监管的规则草案。草案规定股票质押率上限不得超过60%，建立了缓冲，将在股价下跌时对资金出借方构成保护。
