The "Anti-Collusion" Wave Hits the Financial Sector, Guangdong Punishes Over 120 Institutions in the First Half of the Year!

The concept of "anti-collusion" is not about denying competition, but rather reshaping the logic of competition.

The anti-collusion wave has swept across the financial sector, with some provinces taking action.

On July 24, Hexun Times learned from Guangdong's banking and insurance industry news conference that the province's financial regulatory department had issued a list of negative examples of "collusive competition" in the banking and insurance industries, guiding industry associations to research and formulate self-regulatory agreements to promote fair competition.

In today's fiercely competitive market with strict performance evaluations, the financial sector is heavily focused on collusive competition. This year, banks have been competing fiercely for customers by offering interest rates as low as 3% or even lower, leading to irregularities such as clients taking out loans to invest in stocks or properties; meanwhile, credit prices have continued to drop, and the net interest margin has approached 1.43%, a survival threshold.

Frontline industry insiders have a deeper understanding of "collusion". "At the end of the month or quarter, high-interest buying and selling are already open secrets in the banking industry. Some banks even absorb deposits from other institutions at high interest rates or hold tenders for deposits with higher interest rates than the market rate." Lin Li, a bank official, told Hexun Times.

As concerns continue to rise, the industry is promoting "anti-collusion". On July 24, Guangdong issued the "Guangdong Banking Anti-Collusive Competition Self-Regulatory Agreement" and the "Guangdong Insurance Industry Anti-Collusive Competition Self-Regulatory Agreement", emphasizing rational pricing, strict management of rebates, and prohibiting unfair competition.

On July 25, Professor Tidian from the School of Finance at Nanjing University told Hexun Times that guiding the industry to return to reason requires institutional constraints, self-regulation, business transformation, and coordinated supervision. He also believes that financial "anti-collusion" is not about denying competition, but rather reshaping the logic of competition – from "price wars" to "ability-based" competition, and from "scale expansion" to "value creation".

"This transformation requires regulatory guidance, institutional strengthening, and ultimately, a harmonious cycle of industry ecology." Professor Tidian emphasized.

Image source: Tuchuang Creative

The "anti-collusion" banner is unfurled.

After the "anti-collusion" requirements were issued, many financial institutions in Guangdong Province have responded quickly. On July 22, the Guangzhou Branch of Ping An Bank (000001) held a meeting to promote anti-collusive competition; on July 21, the Guangdong Insurance Association held a comprehensive rectification meeting for insurance companies to address collusive competition, with China Pacific Insurance Company, Ping An Life Insurance Company, and other six companies participating.

In fact, the call for "anti-collusion" in the financial sector has been growing louder, with many regions already launching special operations to rectify irregularities.

Hexun Times noted that on June 30, the Anhui Provincial Banking Association's official WeChat account published a statement saying that under the guidance of the provincial financial supervision department, the association had issued the "Anhui Province Banking Industry Anti-Collusive Competition Action Plan", focusing on rectifying irregularities in the banking industry.

Earlier, in April, the Anhui Provincial Banking Association and the Insurance Industry Association jointly published the "Anhui Province Banking and Insurance Sector Anti-Collusive Competition Joint Initiative", emphasizing fair competition, resisting chaotic collusion, and upholding the principle of "one rule for all".

Prior to this, some bank officials had publicly called for "anti-collusion". On April 16, then-Chairman Lujing of Zhejiang Commercial Bank told an audience at a financial innovation conference that the entire society was calling for "anti-collusion", and that Zhejiang Commercial Bank was actively promoting better work practices to achieve happier lives.

Industry insiders believe that current banking industry collusion is focused on price wars and performance evaluation distortions, while the insurance sector is presenting a complex picture of "price wars", "fee wars", and "scale wars".

Professor Tidian told Hexun Times that the root cause of collusion lies in the financial institution's assessment mechanism becoming distorted, with profit margins constantly shrinking. To respond to the narrowing net interest margin, banks have been forced to scale up their operations to make up for losses; insurance companies have been relying on high premium rates to grab market share in a low-interest-rate environment. This "price-driven" competition not only erodes industry ecology but also accumulates risks, undermines customer trust (such as false advertising and consumer manipulation), and weakens the ability of financial institutions to serve the real economy.

Financial regulators have taken action against collusive competition. Hexun Times learned from Guangdong's financial regulatory department that in the first half of this year, it has issued 125 administrative penalties, punished 129 institutions, and warned 212 individuals; in addition, six individuals have been banned from working in the industry.

As for punishment records, Hexun Times analyzed data from enterprise warning reports and found that as of July 24, financial regulators had issued 69 administrative penalties for violations related to deposit-taking business, with 10 fines exceeding ¥100 million. For example, the Zhejiang Provincial Financial Supervision Department's administrative penalty information released on July 11 shows that Zhoushan Rural Commercial Bank and relevant responsible persons were fined ¥160 million for absorbing deposits through unfair means; another bank official, Ban某, was warned.

Insurance companies have also received "thousand-yuan" fines. The China Insurance Regulatory Commission's administrative penalty information released on July 11 shows that a major comprehensive insurance group and its two core subsidiaries were collectively fined ¥1.074 billion for violating regulations related to approved or registered insurance products, fees, and other matters.

What are the key factors guiding financial institutions to return to reason and abandon collusive competition?

Professor Tidian believes that financial "anti-collusion" is not about denying competition, but rather reshaping the logic of competition. First, we need to establish a more favorable institutional framework, clearly defining what cannot be done on paper and what cannot be done in practice, and reconfiguring market participants' game logic; second, industry associations should promote self-regulatory agreements, integrating rational pricing, differentiated innovation, and prohibiting unfair competition into the industry's collective consciousness.

Besides strong regulation, truly abandoning collusive competition requires institutional transformation and coordination with the market. "Financial institutions need to upgrade and transform their business models, head-level institutions can achieve this through optimizing asset-liability structures, technological empowerment, and mid-tier business innovation, gradually breaking free from dependence on traditional deposit-taking; regulators should coordinate with the market by releasing stable interest rates, controlling risks, and sending signals." Professor Tidian emphasized.