By Julie Steinberg 

HONG KONG -- J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is in discussions to sell its stake in its Chinese onshore investment-banking joint venture, according to a filing Thursday.

J.P. Morgan owns 33.3% of the investment-banking joint venture it established in 2011 with First Capital Securities Co. First Capital Securities disclosed in a filing to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange that it and J.P. Morgan are in talks to transfer the 33% stake.

It is unclear what is driving J.P. Morgan's discussions to sell its ownership. Many Wall Street banks have struggled to crack the onshore China investment-banking market. Aggressive domestic rivals, minority ownership and limits to the scope of their operations have hampered many of the joint ventures.

Several banks are considering reshaping their operations on the mainland, according to bankers and lawyers familiar with the discussions.

No agreement has been reached on J.P. Morgan's potential stake sale in the China investment-banking joint venture, according to the filing.

A spokeswoman for J.P. Morgan confirmed the contents of the filing but declined to give a reason for the potential change.

"China is a key market for the firm globally and for many of our clients outside China," the spokeswoman wrote in an email. "J.P. Morgan believes in the long term prospects of China and remains fully committed to our China franchise."

--Yifan Xie contributed to this article.

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 20, 2016 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)

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