Flash News

TREE NEWS update: Edwards Lifesciences said China’s NMPA approved three additional valve-in-valve indications for its SAPIEN 3 transcatheter heart valve system. The approval covers patients with symptomatic heart disease caused by failed surgical aortic, transcatheter aortic or surgical mitral bioprostheses — stenosis, regurgitation or both — who are deemed high-risk or ineligible for conventional surgery by a heart team using a scoring system. Edwards called it the first transcatheter heart valve in China with three valve-in-valve indications.

TREE NEWS update: Austrian cooperative bank Volksbank has partnered with crypto broker Bitpanda to let customers across Central and Eastern Europe buy digital assets, with the service rolling out gradually at subsidiaries in each market. The deal is among the first major moves announced by new CEO Michael Hoellerer. Bitpanda, which already provides similar services to banks including N26, is considering a public listing.

TREE NEWS update: Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission on September 23 published a strategic action roadmap to support the city’s first Five-Year Plan and the 2026 Policy Address, setting out short-, medium- and long-term measures to drive high-quality development of Hong Kong’s capital markets and reinforce its competitive edge as an international financial centre. The roadmap also aims to align with the national 15th Five-Year Plan, strengthening Hong Kong’s role in China’s financial opening.

TREE NEWS update: China’s internet regulator and relevant departments added three generative AI services to its filing list, including “YOYO Claw,” which provides on-device generative AI services for mobile phones. The announcement was made under the country’s interim measures for managing generative AI services, which require providers to complete registration.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Finance Minister Lan Fo’an met Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po in Beijing on September 21, 2026. The two exchanged views on preparations for the APEC finance ministers’ meeting, Hong Kong’s economic and social development, and global trade and economic issues.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Foreign Ministry said it opposes the United States’ threat to punish countries that allow Iranian flights to land on their territory, after Washington said the penalties would take effect from today. Spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular briefing that China’s position is consistent and that it firmly opposes illegal unilateral sanctions without a basis in international law or UN Security Council authorization.

TREE NEWS update: WeChat Security Center said on Sept. 23 that it is continuing to crack down on accounts using pyramid schemes and fraud, including scams run under the guise of “national projects” and “blockchain virtual currencies, stablecoins.” The platform said perpetrators lured users into groups promising high returns, then stole accounts via unknown links and pushed fraudulent apps. WeChat will restrict or ban offending accounts and urged users not to trust low-input, high-return schemes.

TREE NEWS update: China Everbright Bank will stop handling individual precious metals agency business for the Shanghai Gold Exchange from October 19, joining more than 10 banks that have exited the service. A person familiar said the withdrawal was initiated by the SGE, with clients no longer able to buy through banks, while banks continue clearing existing positions. Physical gold consignment sales are unaffected.

TREE NEWS update: Switzerland’s upper house of parliament voted to support a 90% core equity tier 1 (CET1) guarantee for UBS’s overseas subsidiaries. The measure covers the capital backing the bank provides to its foreign units, with the Council of States endorsing the 90% CET1 level.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Ministry of Public Security, National Health Commission and National Medical Products Administration have added the entire class of opiate substances to the Catalogue of Non-Medical Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. The three agencies issued the announcement under the Regulations on the Administration of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and the Measures for the Scheduling of Non-Medical Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.

TREE NEWS update: Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said on the 23rd in Phnom Penh that telecom fraud is a transnational and regional problem that Cambodia cannot eradicate alone, and that sustained international cooperation is essential to defeating the challenge. He made the remarks while stressing the cross-border nature of such criminal operations.

TREE NEWS update: The People’s Bank of China issued its 2026 ninth-tranche central bank bills on Wednesday, September 23, through the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Central Moneymarkets Unit bond tender platform. The issuance was conducted by interest-rate tender. The central bank did not disclose the size of the offering in the material.

TREE NEWS update: Hong Kong lawmaker Johnny Ng Kit-chong said the city’s new licensing regime covering virtual asset trading and custody services is expected to be submitted to the Legislative Council in the second half of this year and could pass by the end of 2026 or early 2027, which would largely clarify digital asset licensing requirements. He added that the two licensed stablecoin issuers in Hong Kong are currently testing different use cases.

TREE NEWS update: Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission added Vebit to its list of suspicious virtual asset trading platforms on September 23, naming five related websites. The regulator said Vebit claims to offer spot, futures and futures copy-trading of digital assets on those sites but is not licensed by the SFC and is suspected of conducting unlicensed activities.

TREE NEWS reports: US Treasury Secretary has emerged as the frontrunner to become President Donald Trump’s AI czar. Trump previously tapped David Sacks as his AI and crypto czar before Sacks stepped down from the role earlier this year after reaching his service limit as a special government employee. No final decision has been confirmed.

TREE NEWS update: The People’s Bank of China issued 60 billion yuan of six-month central bank bills in Hong Kong, with a winning bid rate of 1.37%. The offshore issuance adds to the PBOC’s regular bill sales in the city, which are used to manage yuan liquidity outside the mainland.

TREE NEWS update: Eurozone September flash manufacturing, services and composite PMIs are due at 16:00 Beijing time, preceded by French, German and UK readings and followed by US flash PMIs at 21:45. ECB Vice President Boris Vujcic speaks at 15:00 on digital banking and digital regulation, with ECB governing council members Ulo Kaasik, Boris Vujcic and Zigman, plus chief economist Philip Lane, also scheduled. Japan’s stock market is closed for a holiday.

TREE NEWS reports: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei are expected to brief the UN Security Council as it examines AI risks and global security. The two executives would address the council on the dangers posed by advanced artificial intelligence. No date for the briefing was given.

TREE NEWS update: Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said the city needs to broaden its range of renminbi-denominated products and build out the related infrastructure, and that it needs more quality issuers to list. Chan made the remarks in comments published on the city’s financial development priorities. He did not specify a timeline or list the products or issuers involved.