MACQUARIE Group Ltd. is in advanced talks to create a majority-owned securities joint venture firm in China, according to people familiar with the matter, the latest international bank seeking to establish itself in one of the world’s biggest markets.

Sydney-based Macquarie is drafting a final agreement with two Chinese conglomerates, said the people, declining to name the companies. It plans to form a three-way venture in Shanghai, and will submit its application in the next couple of months, the people said. Macquarie would take a 51 percent stake in the joint venture, the people said.

Allowing majority foreign ownership of securities joint ventures is a key part of China’s financial opening. On Friday, China granted UBS Group AG the first approval for overseas majority control of a securities joint venture. Nomura Holdings Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. have also applied.

A Macquarie spokeswoman declined to comment.

Macquarie officials decided to move ahead with the joint venture after rule changes earlier this year allowed foreign firms to partner with companies outside the brokerage industry, said the people. The new regulations removed concerns that overseas companies looking for joint venture partners might be forced to buy stakes from existing brokerages at high prices, one of the people said.

Foreign companies that team up with non-securities firms to start a joint venture need at least two local partners, according to the rules. Such a setup can make it easier for the foreign entity to exert greater control.

Macquarie operates an asset management business in China, working with local insurance companies and sovereign funds to help them invest offshore. It also works in the infrastructure and real estate sectors and advises on cross-border deals.

If the Australian firm finalizes its plans, it would be the second time it’s tried to enter China’s securities industry. In 2008, it signed a pact with Hengtai Securities Co. only to cancel the deal because of concerns over management control and prices, said one of the people familiar with the matter. (SD-Agencies)