China’s CSRC to Review Margin Trading Risk Controls, May Free Up Leverage

The signal here is regulatory direction rather than any single metric: the CSRC is explicitly linking tighter margin rules to the subsequent drop in margin balances and activity, and now framing a partial unwind as liquidity support with risk still "controllable." That matters most for brokerages, whose margin books and fee income have been compressed, and for leveraged retail participation in onshore equities. The open question is scope — whether the review touches only the headline margin financing ratio or also collateral conversion and maintenance guarantee ratios, since the latter shape effective leverage more than the headline number.