If at first you don’t succeed, try again when the markets improve – and you can really pressure deal-starved underwriters to deliver the big investors. Haitong Securities, China’s second-biggest brokerage by assets, is testing the old listing tactic ahead of Friday’s pricing of its Hong Kong shares.

The 10 underwriters on the deal (a Who’s Who of US and European investment banks) are thick skinned enough to shrug off Haitong’s bullying tactics over landing cornerstone investors – or risk demotion. True, Chinese companies tend towards a divide-and-rule philosophy with their advisers. But the pukka line-up also illustrates the competitive pressures of the business that Haitong wants to expand into. After all, it has big ambitions: more than a third of listing proceeds of up to $1.8bn is earmarked for overseas acquisitions. But, for now, investors are buying a mostly domestic operation. It derives nearly half its income from straightforward brokerage at home, where revenues fell a third last year. Investment banking, its second business line, generates only a tenth of sales. Weak trading volumes have hit all brokers, but the limited,albeit expanding, access for foreign investors to Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets does not help.

Hong Kong, as well as Haitong, are desperate for success as the broker is the first of the big casualties of last year’s market turmoil to try again. If bigger rival Citic Securities’ fortunes are a guide, Haitong could start well. Citic has gained 15 per cent since its October listing, against 2 per cent for the Hang Seng index. But Haitong’s biggest opportunity will come only when its 4m-plus Chinese retail customers can invest overseas. That is when it should deploy its acquisition war chest. Until then, it will remain dependent on the pace of China’s market liberalisation. But that is so far proving to be slow.