(Yicai Global) March 27 -- Full-year profit at Haitong Securities, one of China's top brokerages, climbed 83 percent thanks to a surge in overseas business, which included bookrunning the Nasdaq's second-biggest Asian corporate listing last year.

Net profit came in at CNY9.5 billion (USD1.34 billion) in the year ended Dec. 31 on a 45 percent gain in revenue to CNY34.4 billion, the Shanghai-based company said yesterday in its financial report for 2019.

Overseas business revenue totaled almost CNY9 billion, about a quarter of all Haitong's revenue, placing it first for overseas income among the five Chinese securities firms that have released annual earnings so far.

Apart from being one of the bookrunners for Luckin Coffee's initial public offering in New York, unit Haitong International Securities handled 49 other global IPOs and 58 equity financing projects in 2019, mainly in Hong Kong. It also completed 247 bond issuance projects, putting it at the head of the Chinese real estate bond market.

Last year's performance suggests the brokerage may have been one of the most successful behind Citic Securities, China's largest brokerage, but Haitong also warned that the novel coronavirus outbreak could impede operations in certain regions and industries.

The company's mainland-listed shares [SHA:600837] gained 0.8 percent today to close at CNY12.95 (USD1.83), while its Hong Kong stock [HKG:6837] finished 1.4 percent lower at HKD7.06 (91 US cents).

Haintong Securities' income from investments more than tripled to CNY11.5 billion last year. Unit Haitong International Asset Management had assets worth HKD53.5 billion (USD6.9 billion) under management at the end of 2019.

Editor: James Boynton