Flash News

TREE NEWS update: The Beijing Stock Exchange imposed three-month trading restrictions on three investors for privately acquiring new shares during IPO subscriptions and agreeing to split the resulting gains. The investors struck off-market arrangements in the subscription phase, paying fixed fees or agreeing to profit-sharing to lock in returns and shift risk ahead of the listing. The exchange said the conduct bypassed public trading channels and disrupted new-share issuance order.

TREE NEWS update: Huang Guo, head of China’s National Medical Products Administration, led a delegation to Lhasa and Shannan in Tibet to study Tibetan medicine development. He called for faster improvement of Tibetan medicine standards, greater use of ancient classic formulas, and conversion of classic formulas and hospital preparations into new drugs, along with protection of medicinal plant resources and standardized cultivation to ensure quality and sustainability.

TREE NEWS reports: Huang Guo, head of China’s National Medical Products Administration, led a delegation to Lhasa and Shannan in Tibet to research the development of Tibetan medicine. He called for rapidly improving Tibetan medicine standards, increasing the use of classical formulas, converting classical formulas and hospital preparations into new drugs, along with protecting medicinal material resources and standardized cultivation to ensure quality and sustainability.

TREE NEWS update: The Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation have issued a request for comment on third-party risk management. The two US banking regulators are seeking public input on how banks oversee outside service providers. The comment period and specific proposals were not detailed in the notice.

TREE NEWS update: Chengdu’s economy and information technology bureau has published a draft ‘Token Voucher’ implementation plan for public comment over 30 days. Under the plan, a single entity’s voucher support would cover up to 30% of actual purchase costs, rising to 50% for small and micro enterprises, capped at 2 million yuan per entity, with total citywide issuance limited to 100 million yuan per year.

TREE NEWS update: White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said he respects the Federal Reserve’s independence and spoke highly of Kevin Warsh, adding that he is confident President Trump would have views if the Fed raises rates. Hassett said inflation has clearly been decelerating over the past three months. He also said budget reconciliation is one route to distributing a $5,000 Trump subsidy, which could be delivered in a fiscally responsible way, and that Trump is very serious about the $5,000 proposal.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator issued the Supervisory and Administrative Measures for Futures Companies, setting tiered minimum registered capital requirements. Firms handling domestic futures brokerage need at least RMB 100 million, while those adding futures trading advisory services need at least RMB 200 million. Firms conducting trading-class businesses such as futures market making, asset management or derivatives trading need at least RMB 500 million for one business and RMB 1 billion for two or more. Where a firm operates multiple business types, the highest applicable threshold applies.

TREE NEWS update: The European Securities and Markets Authority said prediction markets are “rife with inside trading” and questioned why Kalshi and Polymarket block access in some EU countries but not others, noting that VPNs are used to circumvent those blocks. The regulator’s remarks put the two platforms’ EU access policies under scrutiny.

TREE NEWS update: The China Securities Regulatory Commission has issued a prior notice of administrative penalty against Shanghai Zhuoran Engineering Technology Co., Ltd. (*ST Zhuoran) over alleged false records in its periodic reports and other financial data. The CSRC said it acted on suspicion of fraudulent financial disclosures by the listed company. The case is part of the regulator’s serious crackdown on serious financial fraud.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Ministry of Commerce responded to CIA Deputy Director Ellis’s public statement that the US is conducting broader espionage against China, including Chinese companies, to counter what he called a “dual threat” in the military and economic spheres. Ellis specifically named Chinese firms in artificial intelligence, semiconductors and biotechnology as legitimate targets of espionage. The ministry’s spokesperson took questions on the remarks.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator issued administrative penalty decisions against former analysts Zong Jianshu and Ma Xingrui for fabricating and spreading false information. Zong received a five-year market ban, while Ma was fined 300,000 yuan. On the same day, Hubei’s securities bureau ordered their former employer, Changjiang Securities, to rectify its practices. The firm said it has disciplined the employees, who have since left the company.

TREE NEWS update: Sam Bankman-Fried has petitioned the US Supreme Court to overturn his fraud conviction and $11 billion forfeiture, seeking a new trial. The FTX founder argues jurors heard testimony about customer losses while his defense lawyers were barred from showing the assets existed to repay them.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator fined Chen Guanghua, a finance blogger with more than 1.03 million followers, 200,000 yuan for fabricating and spreading false information that disrupted the securities market. Chen posted information on February 3, 2026 containing false content about tax rate adjustments from his verified self-media account, which carries influence as a certified investment expert and finance blogger.

TREE NEWS update: Senate Republicans released a revised version of the Clarity Act that adds CFTC registration requirements for DeFi protocols deemed not truly decentralized, ahead of a cloture vote. The new text leaves the ethics section untouched, which Democrats have been holding out for.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator issued an administrative penalty decision (No. 37 of 2026) banning Zong Jianshu, a securities practitioner, from the market for five years for fabricating and spreading false information. The CSRC found that on December 16, 2025, Zong fabricated information about tax rate adjustments and posted it in a WeChat group, which was determined to be false.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator, the CSRC, has approved CICC’s absorption merger of Dongxing Securities and Xinda Securities through newly issued shares. After completion, the two brokerages will be dissolved and their branches converted into CICC branches. Oriental Asset and Xinda Asset will become major CICC shareholders with 8.03% and 16.76% stakes respectively, while CICC will become a major shareholder of Dongxing Fund and Xinda Aoya Fund and take control of Dongxing Futures and Xinda Futures.

TREE NEWS update: China has officially launched data property rights registration, the National Data Administration said, issuing “identity certificates” for data across various forms. The registration clarifies who holds the data, what it can be used for and who may use it, as the country pushes to speed the circulation and use of data as a new production factor.

TREE NEWS update: Albuquerque has banned Bitcoin ATMs and given operators 45 days to remove the machines from the city. A city councilor said 90% of crypto kiosk transactions in Albuquerque are tied to fraud, calling the machines a conduit for crime. The removal deadline applies to operators of the kiosks currently deployed in the city.