China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in Beijing Photo:VCG
Chinese securities regulators have issued more than 12 penalties to securities brokers for illegal activities, in the latest sign of tighter regulations for the securities market to tackle risks and ensure stable development, according to a report on Tuesday.
The enhanced regulatory enforcement comes after China in April issued a sweeping nine-point guideline to strengthen regulation, tackle risks and promote the high-quality development of the capital market. It also comes after global financial markets have recently been rattled by concerns over an economic slowdown in the US and other risks.
Over the past week, regulators across the country issued at least 12 penalties, with the local regulators in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province and East China's Zhejiang Province issuing three penalties on Monday. The penalties involved CITIC Securities and China Merchants Securities and were triggered by securities brokers who illegally sent clients answers to key evaluation questions, Shanghai Securities News reported on Tuesday.
The latest cases add to a growing number of penalties issued by Chinese securities regulators since the beginning of the year. In the first half of 2024, regulators issued more than 200 penalties to 50 securities brokerages, according to an account by Shanghai Securities News. The penalties involved businesses including brokerage, investment banking and asset management.
The increased penalties point to the lack of proper compliance by some securities industry practitioners, a person with a brokerage was cited by Shanghai Securities News as saying.
The new guideline issued in April, only the third of its kind that has been issued by the State Council, China's cabinet, covers nine areas, including mapping out clear goals for the capital market over the next five years and through 2035, strengthening regulations for the listing process, stepping up supervision of listed firms, ramping up regulations for delisting of unqualified firms, and guiding more medium- and long-term funds into the market.
As part of the country's continuous efforts to tackle risks, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the top stock regulator, has also taken a slew of steps in recent months, including suspending relending and issuing new regulations for quantitative trading.
