Chinese retail giant Alibaba threatens to leave Wall Street | Financial

Under a law introduced in 2020, the US regulator must have full access to information from accountants of foreign companies listed in the US. Where companies from other countries open up, the government in Beijing is blocking an American assessment of the due diligence in China.

In addition to Alibaba, more than 270 Chinese companies are at risk of losing their New York stock exchange listing for the same reason. This includes the operator of fast food chain KFC in China, Yum China Holdings. Social media company Weibo and e-commerce company JD.com are also on the list.

banned

After the companies are on the SEC’s suspect list, it will take three years before they can actually be banned from the New York stock exchanges. Alibaba has until August 19 to appeal the decision.

SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said it is especially important that the US and Chinese governments reach an agreement on full access to the due diligence of the listed companies. By verifying all that information, the SEC can determine whether quarterly and annual figures of foreign companies listed on Wall Street are reliable.

—