A seismic shift is underway in the playbook of China's most prominent retail investors. The appearance of natural person Fu Xiaotong on the shareholder roster of CITIC Securities has sent ripples through the market, marking a rare instance of an individual breaking into the institutional stronghold of the country's largest brokerage.
On the evening of April 24th, Citic Securities Company Limited (600030.SH) released its first-quarter report for 2026, revealing that Fu Xiaotong had acquired 84,112,831 A-shares, representing 0.57% of the total share capital. This position catapulted him to the status of the company's ninth-largest shareholder. Based on the March 31st closing price of 24.04 yuan, his holdings were valued at approximately 2.022 billion yuan. Using the quarter's average share price of 25.33 yuan, the market value of his stake swells to an estimated 2.131 billion yuan, even surpassing the holdings of the Huatai-PineBridge CSI 300 open-end index fund. Fu's concentrated betting strategy bears a striking resemblance to the approach famously employed by the seasoned investor Zhang Jianping in his 2024 play on Cambricon Technologies.
A Sudden Splash
While Zhang Jianping is a household name in investment circles, Fu Xiaotong has remained largely under the radar—until now. CITIC Securities, a behemoth in the brokerage industry with a market capitalization in the hundreds of billions, has not seen a natural person on its top-ten shareholder list in over a decade. Its roster is typically dominated by state-owned entities and institutional investors, making Fu's entry all the more remarkable.
A man of such financial heft is clearly an entrepreneur. Public records show Fu Xiaotong began his career in 1996, and after 2000 served as deputy general manager at Shaanxi Qinmei Industrial Group. In 2018, he acquired full ownership of Shaanxi Liulin Liquor and has steered its development since. By the end of 2024, he had assumed the role of chairman and actual controller of Wanlong Optoelectronics. His audacious move into CITIC Securities is fueled by past successes in the capital markets. In 2018, he made a fleeting appearance as the fourth-largest shareholder of Fangda Carbon New Material, only to vanish from the top ten a quarter later—a classic short-term trading maneuver. The following year, he and his affiliated Liulin Liquor invested 286 million yuan in a private placement for Golden Seed Wine. Through subsequent share reductions, he reportedly achieved a return of over 160%, netting approximately 470 million yuan. That single transaction cemented his reputation.
Fu Xiaotong epitomizes the "industry plus investment" operator. As an industrialist, his insight into sector trends surpasses that of the average investor. Leveraging his status as a seasoned natural-person investor, he remains an active force in the A-share secondary market, concentrating on heavyweight financial, tech, and cyclical stocks while engaging in diverse capital operations such as private placements and stake building to continuously enhance his investment returns. His involvement with Wanlong Optoelectronics dates back to 2020. In September 2021, Xu Mengfei, the then-controlling shareholder and co-actual controller, signed a share transfer agreement with Qianquan Technology, Li'anmin Investment, Fu Xiaotong, and Lei Qian'guo, transferring a total of 13.72 million shares at 33.52 yuan per share, amounting to 460 million yuan. Through a series of subsequent maneuvers, Fu gradually increased his stake to 14.63%, ultimately becoming the company's actual controller. Fu initially harbored ambitions to make a mark in the new energy sector, but reality proved harsh. He has been saddled with cleaning up the "mess" left by his predecessor's foray into new energy vehicles. Despite narrowing losses year-on-year in 2025, the company's revenue hit a five-year low.
Cross-Border Restructuring
In his quest to revitalize Wanlong Optoelectronics, Fu Xiaotong has left no stone unturned. On May 29, 2026, the company unveiled a 2.3 billion yuan cross-border acquisition proposal: a plan to acquire 100% of Zhejiang Zcon Information Industry Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Zcon Information") through a combination of "share issuance plus cash payment," with a valuation of 2.325 billion yuan. Under the payment structure, 2.093 billion yuan would be settled via share issuance, with the remaining 232.5 million yuan in cash. The share issuance for asset purchase is priced at 19.19 yuan per share, involving approximately 109 million new shares. The accompanying fundraising, fully subscribed by Fu Xiaotong, the company's actual controller, is priced at 21.23 yuan per share, with proceeds earmarked for cash consideration, working capital replenishment, technology R&D, and production line construction.
Financial reports reveal that Zcon Information generated revenue of 2.335 billion yuan in 2025, with total assets reaching 6.235 billion yuan. In stark contrast, Wanlong Optoelectronics recorded revenue of just 270 million yuan and total assets of only 582 million yuan during the same period—a glaring disparity in scale. The capital markets, however, showed no mercy. On June 1st, Wanlong Optoelectronics' share price once hit the daily limit down, closing at -18.53%, and has continued its downward trajectory since. Wanlong's core business—radio and television network equipment and data communication systems—faces fierce competition and sluggish growth. Without a swift return to profitability, the company risks delisting. In this context, the acquisition of Zcon Information represents a "lifeline" prescribed by Fu Xiaotong for the struggling firm.
Fu has invested a total of 968 million yuan to rescue Wanlong Optoelectronics. His holding of 44.4023 million shares, valued at 1.194 billion yuan based on the August 19th closing price of 26.89 yuan, still leaves him with a paper profit. If the injection of Zcon Information succeeds in turning Wanlong around, Fu stands to be the biggest beneficiary. Meanwhile, the venture capital institutions and industrial investors behind Zcon Information—including listed companies like Chint Electric, as well as Zhejiang state capital and the China Internet Investment Fund—would also reap substantial rewards from the backdoor listing.
Awaiting the Brokerage Spring
His industrial maneuvers have been circuitous and fraught with challenges. Now, Fu Xiaotong is pivoting to emulate Zhang Jianping's strategy of targeting industry trend leaders for substantial gains, making bold moves into undervalued blue-chip stocks. His pick: CITIC Securities. Despite being the flagship stock of the "bull market banner," CITIC Securities has seen its share price stagnate this year even as its earnings surge. The company's first-quarter results were indeed stellar, with revenue growth exceeding 40% and net profit up over 54%. The interim report further showed a profit surge of 69.59%. As a savvy capital magnate, Fu may well be betting on a sustained market recovery that would benefit brokerage stocks.
In the first quarter of this year, Fu was not alone. Other listed brokerages also witnessed the emergence of natural persons among their top ten shareholders. For instance, both Northeast Securities and Sinolink Securities saw individual investors newly enter or increase their positions. This trend suggests that some high-net-worth individuals are beginning to turn bullish on the brokerage sector. Reports indicate that Fu Xiaotong used a margin account to purchase CITIC Securities shares, retaining the flexibility for tactical moves or leverage. With the stock's average price at 25 yuan in the first quarter and a closing price of 27.39 yuan on August 18th, Fu currently holds a modest profit.
Furthermore, CITIC Securities serves as the sponsor for Unitree Technology's IPO. Its private equity subsidiary, CITIC Jinshi, manages Jinshi Growth, which holds approximately 3.737% of Unitree's shares post-issuance, while affiliated CITIC Securities Investment holds a 0.304% stake. The company is poised to reap substantial gains from Unitree's listing. Indeed, on August 19th, Unitree's shares opened at an astonishing 1,100 yuan on its debut, and despite some pullback, recorded a first-day gain of 495% by 10:12 AM. While Fu Xiaotong may not have struck gold with CITIC Securities this cycle, based on an average holding cost of 25 yuan per share from the first quarter, he remains slightly in the black. Whether the bull market flagship will lead the charge in the second half of the year, and whether Fu Xiaotong will ride the wave of a brokerage surge, remains to be seen.
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