Currently, China's capital market is entering a critical stage of high-quality development.
On March 20, the Ministry of Justice, the People's Bank of China, the Financial Regulatory Administration, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange published the &#34;Draft Financial Law of the People's Republic of China&#34; (hereinafter referred to as the draft) on their official websites, soliciting public opinions. As the first foundational law in China's financial sector, the draft clearly proposes to &#34;comprehensively strengthen financial regulation&#34; and &#34;improve the system and mechanism for protecting the rights and interests of financial consumers and investors,&#34; marking a key step in the process of legal and regulatory development in finance.
On the eve of the implementation of top-level policy design, industry self-regulatory norms are also accelerating their improvement. Just one day before the draft was published, the China Securities Association officially released the &#34;Key Position Competency Model Series for Securities Companies (Investment Advisor Category),&#34; which is the first systematic and standardized competency framework for investment advisor positions in the domestic securities industry. It covers four major dimensions and 17 competencies, along with dedicated courses, establishing standards and regulations for the professionalization of investment advisory services. From a deeper perspective, this is not only a supplement to the system but also an important shift in regulatory logic from &#34;development priority&#34; to &#34;emphasis on regulation and protection,&#34; indicating that the era of extensive expansion in the industry is accelerating to an end.
The combination of top-level legislation and industry regulations is deeply reconstructing the ecological landscape of the securities investment advisory industry. In the past, this industry has long prioritized sales over professionalism, with severe homogenization and reliance on simple stock recommendation models, making it difficult to meet deeper needs. Now, under regulatory guidance, the industry is accelerating its structural transformation: shifting from product sales to client entrustment, and moving from homogenized competition to professional value creation. Therefore, in this context of multiple intertwined changes, a core question arises: how can securities investment advisory institutions accurately align with stringent regulatory guidance, directly address the real pain points of the market, and accelerate the transformation and upgrading of traditional extensive service models to achieve breakthroughs amid industry reshuffling?
The answer to this question may be found in the real demands of investors. Several market respondents have stated that this round of industry transformation precisely addresses their long-standing investment pain points. In recent years, the A-share market has experienced increased volatility, and many investors have repeatedly suffered setbacks in chasing highs and cutting losses. Meanwhile, as the investment attributes of real estate weaken and deposit interest rates continue to decline, household wealth is rapidly migrating to the equity market. However, ordinary investors generally lack systematic investment methodologies and professional allocation guidance, leading to rising anxiety about asset preservation and appreciation. &#34;Having funds but no methods, having needs but no services&#34; has become the most prominent structural contradiction currently.
The contradiction of supply and demand mismatch is also becoming increasingly prominent. On one hand, investors have a rapidly growing demand for professional investment advisory services, hoping for comprehensive services covering asset diagnosis, dynamic portfolio adjustment, risk hedging, and long-term companionship; on the other hand, traditional investment advisory models are still stuck in the old path of &#34;stock recommendations to attract clients and selling products for profit,&#34; making it difficult to truly address the core demands of investors. A deeper issue is that ordinary investors are often driven by short-term emotions, easily chasing highs and cutting losses, while the long-term return allocation logic of the capital market is contrary to this. The misalignment between the two highlights the value of professional investment advisory services.
The Non-Bank Financial Research Team of Guotai Junan Securities Research Institute pointed out in their latest research report that the scale of equity management will continue to expand, the user base of securities apps will steadily grow, and the demand for wealth management among residents, especially for equity allocation, is continuously increasing. Third-party investment advisory institutions urgently need to fill the gaps in professional services
The team expects that by 2030, the domestic securities investment consulting market size is likely to exceed 51.4 billion yuan. This judgment not only outlines the growth potential of the industry but also highlights the urgency for investment advisory services to upgrade towards professionalism and systematization.
In the face of opportunities and transformation pressures, leading securities firms have taken the lead in layout, promoting the transformation of investment advisory business towards a buy-side model. GF Securities proposed a shift from a &#34;product-centered&#34; sales orientation to an &#34;asset allocation service centered on customer needs,&#34; and aims to promote the return of investment advisory to the essence of customer service with directions of &#34;asset allocation, buy-side advisory, and solution-oriented.&#34;
Guoyuan Securities is also taking multiple measures to promote transformation. By piloting a reform of the compensation system in its branches, it has optimized the &#34;low base salary + high commission&#34; model to &#34;high base salary + low commission,&#34; strengthening the binding of investment advisory with customer interests. At the same time, it has established an assessment system centered on customer satisfaction, strategy execution effectiveness, and AUM growth, and leveraged AI technology to integrate data and strategies, creating an intelligent investment research platform that spans the entire chain.
It is worth mentioning that in the deep transformation of the securities investment advisory industry, third-party independent institutions, leveraging their mechanism advantages, have become a key force in the transformation. Unlike securities firms' investment advisory services, which are constrained by internal interests, third-party institutions focus on their main business and have high flexibility, allowing them to address service shortcomings based on investor interests and seize opportunities in the industry's reconstruction of buy-side value.
More critically, in the profound shift of the industry's service focus from &#34;investment&#34; to &#34;advisory,&#34; empowered by technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data, third-party institutions not only provide investment advice but also emphasize investor education, behavioral correction, and full-cycle companionship. This &#34;30% investment, 70% advisory&#34; service model aligns with the direction of strengthening the binding of interests with investors and conforms to the major trend of residents' wealth management transitioning from single assets to diversified allocations, allowing investment advisory services to truly return from a &#34;traffic business&#34; to a &#34;trust business.&#34;
Against this backdrop, Jiufang Zhituo, as one of the representative third-party advisory institutions, has consistently anchored its &#34;technology + investment research&#34; strategy, with artificial intelligence as the core driving force, deeply integrating the &#34;customer-centered&#34; concept into the entire service process, creating a new learning path for investors that combines professional depth with human warmth. In July 2024, Jiufang Zhituo launched the industry's first Jiufang AI Stock Machine, which not only showcases the company's technical research and development strength but also represents a disruptive innovation to traditional service models.
This product integrates six core modules: courses, live broadcasts, information, market data, tools, and real-time trading, covering nine major course systems including stock selection, timing, risk control, and strategies, constructing a relatively complete investment learning and decision support system. Unlike traditional stock recommendation tools, it aims to address investors' real needs in decision-making assistance and emotional companionship throughout the entire process, combining professional investment research capabilities with innovative technology, emphasizing cognitive enhancement and behavioral guidance, and creating a service system that is warmer and more effective, which also aligns with current regulatory requirements for investor protection.
It is reported that since its launch in July 2024, its sales have exceeded 150,000 units. From market feedback, the value of such products lies not in &#34;replacing decisions&#34; but in &#34;enhancing decision-making capabilities.&#34;
Conclusion:
From top-level legislation to industry standards, a profound structural transformation is reshaping the securities investment advisory industry. The industry is bidding farewell to extensive sales and homogeneous competition, accelerating the return to a &#34;customer-centric&#34; essence.
In this process, brokerages are promoting the transformation of the buy-side through mechanism reconstruction, while third-party institutions are leveraging technology to achieve differentiated breakthroughs. Although the paths are different, the direction is consistent—rebuilding trust and returning to professionalism.
It is foreseeable that the core competitiveness of the investment advisory industry in the future will no longer be short-term profitability, but rather long-term service capability and the ability to accompany clients.
In this trend, the innovative exploration of the Jiufang Smart Investment service model provides, to some extent, a forward-looking sample: using technology to support regulatory guidance and responding to investor needs with a system, seeking a balance between regulation and efficiency.
As the industry enters the &#34;deep water zone,&#34; only service models that truly address investor issues can navigate through cycles and achieve long-term stability.
Author: Lin Ran

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China's capital market is entering a stage of high-quality development. The Ministry of Justice and other institutions have released the "Financial Law (Draft)," emphasizing the strengthening of financial regulation and the protection of investors' rights. At the same time, the China Securities Association has issued a competency model for investment advisors, marking the industry's shift towards professionalization. The regulatory logic is shifting from "development first" to "emphasis on both regulation and protection," and the industry is facing a structural transformation that requires precise alignment with regulatory guidance and meeting investor needs

Top-level legislation combined with standard regulations marks a turning point in the restructuring of the securities investment advisory industry