'China firms actively working with regulators for US listing'

Forcing US-listed Chinese firms to delist isn't responsible policy option: Securities watchdog

China’s securities watchdog said on Sunday it respects companies’ choices on where to list their stock while adding some domestic companies were actively working with Chinese and foreign regulators to have shares listed in the US.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission denied reports of a possible ban on one method of overseas stock listings and said in a statement that reports are “completely misleading” that regulators are promoting firms drop their US listings.
 

The CSRC said in a statement on Wednesday it wasn’t true that China would stop overseas listings of firms using a variable interest entity structure. Bloomberg News reported that such a ban was in the works, citing people familiar with the matter, an effort in part intended to address data-security concerns.

Meanwhile, the agency said on Sunday that recent Chinese policies to regulate online platforms were aimed at curbing monopolies and ensuring data security. The rules won’t target a particular industry or just the private sector, and they aren’t necessarily linked to overseas listings, according to the CSRC.

The watchdog also called for pragmatic China-US cooperation on audit oversight, stressing that forcing US-listed Chinese companies to delist isn’t a responsible policy option. “Positive progress” has been made in talks on regulatory cooperation between the CSRC and US securities and accounting regulators, the agency said.

“The main purpose of (those moves) is to regulate monopoly, to protect the interests and data security of small- and medium-sized firms, as well as personal information security,” the CSRC said in a statement. Some media reports had said that China will likely ban companies with a Variable Interest Entity structure from US listing.