China's securities regulator tightens delisting regulation
China's securities regulator on Friday released a guideline on strict implementation of delisting regulation.
The guideline, released by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, focuses on improving the overall quality of listed companies, clearing out "zombie shell" companies and "black sheep" stocks, and reducing the value of "shell" resources through stricter delisting regulation, expanding diverse exit channels and strengthening investor protection.
Specifically, the guideline demands adopting stricter standards for compulsory delisting, forcing companies found guilty of serious falsification within a year or engaging in continuous falsification to delist. It also calls for a resolute crackdown on vicious and long-term systemic financial frauds.
It requires improving policies and regulations in areas such as mergers and acquisitions, encouraging and guiding leading companies to integrate industrial chains based on their main businesses.
The guideline also urged efforts to intensify delisting supervision, severely punish illegal activities such as financial fraud, insider trading and market manipulation, and optimize investor compensation remedy mechanisms.
The commission released the aforementioned set of measures after China's State Council released a guideline on strengthening regulation, forestalling risks and promoting the high-quality development of the capital market.
This is the third guideline document on the capital market from the State Council in two decades. The first two were issued in 2004 and 2014, respectively.
The country should build a secure, regulated, transparent, open, dynamic and resilient capital market, the State Council guideline noted.
The securities regulator has also started soliciting public opinions on six draft rules covering regulations on issuance, listed companies, securities companies and trading, starting on Friday.