By Prudence Ho And Rick Carew 

HONG KONG--Guolian Securities Co., the joint venture partner of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC in China, is planning an initial public offering in Hong Kong this year, people familiar with the situation said Thursday.

The Chinese brokerage is looking to raise around US$200 million and is working with Bocom International Holdings Co., the investment banking arm of Bank of Communications Co., and ABC International Holdings Ltd., the investment banking arm of Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., for the offering, one of the people said.

Guolian will join other two Chinese brokerages--the Shenzhen-listed GF Securities Co. and Huatai Securities--that are looking to raise capital in Hong Kong this year. GF Securities plans to raise US$1 billion in the first quarter this year, while Huatai Securities aims to raise US$1 billion in the second half.

Chinese brokerages have been raising capital to expand business amid China's Shanghai Composite Index rising 37% in the fourth quarter last year.

Guolian, which was founded in 1992, has more than 50 branches in major Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Beijing and Guangdong, according to its website. It posted a revenue of 1.02 billion yuan (US$164 million) in 2013, up 24% from a year ago, while its net profit surged 181% to 264 million yuan.

In 2010, it signed an agreement with RBS to set up a joint venture which would underwrite stock and bond issuance in China. Huaying Securities Co, the joint venture, started operation a year after, in 2011.

RBS holds one-third of the Huaying joint venture, while Guolian owns the rest. Foreign firms can take part in Chinese securities transactions only through joint ventures with domestic firms.

Guolian and RBS couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

Write to Prudence Ho at prudence.ho@wsj.com and Rick Carew at rick.carew@wsj.com

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