Chinese online brokerages may be in Beijing’s crosshairs as a central banker from the country recently called cross-border trading businesses «illegal».
The People’s Bank of China’s head of the financial stability department Sun Tianqi slammed cross-border online brokerages in what has been seen by some as the next potential target for Beijing’s ever-widening crackdown.
«Cross-border online brokerages are driving in China without a driver's license,» according to a transcript of Sun’s speech at the recent Bund Summit based in Shanghai. «They're conducting illegal financial activities.»
Futu, UP Fintech
Chinese brokerages Futu and UP Fintech are believed to be amongst those targeted after the two firms were already warned of facing regulatory risks from new personal data privacy laws, according to an analysis in state media «People’s Daily» earlier this month.
At the summit over the weekend, Sun spoke about two firms and their high ratio of mainland Chinese accounts without identifying their names. Mainland Chinese traders made up 80 percent of accounts at one Cayman-registered brokerage and 55 percent at another Hong Kong-registered firm.
«Financial licenses have national boundaries,» Sun said. «Overseas institutions with only overseas licenses conducting business in mainland China is illegal financial activity.»
