整治“内卷”！交易商协会发文规范债券承销，剑指“返费”“自融”等非市场化发行

Core Viewpoint - The China Interbank Market Dealers Association issued a notice to strengthen the norms for bond issuance and underwriting, addressing issues such as low underwriting fees, low underwriting, and interest transfer, aiming to restore order in the bond market and promote fair competition based on professional capabilities and service value [2][3]. Group 1: Regulatory Measures - The notice emphasizes that issuers and underwriters must conduct issuance and underwriting according to market principles, treating all investors fairly and avoiding practices like "rebates" that distort market prices [3]. - Underwriters are prohibited from quoting below cost for bond project bidding and must fulfill payment obligations as per commercial agreements [3][4]. - The association will implement self-regulation in the interbank bond market, regularly monitoring issuance and underwriting activities, and will impose disciplinary measures for violations [4]. Group 2: Market Context - The notice was issued in response to increased competition in the bond underwriting sector due to a surge in credit bond issuance, with nearly 1.5 trillion yuan in supply in May alone [4]. - The ongoing issue of homogeneous competition has weakened the pricing power of underwriting services, potentially amplifying risks and mispricing during the issuance process [4]. - The asset scarcity problem persists, leading some underwriters to engage in low-price underwriting for high-quality issuers [4]. Group 3: Risks of Non-compliance - If low-price underwriting and other non-market behaviors are not corrected, they could erode industry profits, weaken due diligence and risk pricing capabilities, and disrupt market interest rates [5]. - Practices like "pool investment" may obscure the true structure of investors, affecting market transparency, while interest transfer directly undermines the fairness of the issuance and underwriting market [5][6]. Group 4: Historical Context and Examples - The association has previously reported several cases of violations, including instances of "self-financing" and "rebates" that disrupt market order and allow unqualified issuers to increase debt levels [7]. - Various financial institutions, including banks and asset management companies, have been implicated in facilitating non-market bond issuance practices [7]. Group 5: Recommendations for Improvement - Suggestions include separating book-building from underwriting and requiring underwriters to disclose underwriting risk premiums in their quotes to enhance neutrality [8]. - It is recommended to enforce strict firewall mechanisms between bond issuance and fund usage departments in large banks and to strengthen behavior regulation through improved information disclosure [8].