Flash News

TREE NEWS reports: The UK government is drawing up plans to make safety reporting and monitoring mandatory for frontier AI. The proposal would require firms developing the most advanced models to report on safety and submit to monitoring. No timeline, legislative vehicle or scope has been disclosed.

TREE NEWS update: China has issued a document titled “Opinions on Strictly Investigating and Punishing Illegal and Criminal Acts Endangering Food Safety in Accordance with the Law.” The opinion calls for strict legal enforcement against food safety violations. No further details on the measures or issuing authorities were provided in the material.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Foreign Ministry announced countermeasures against Paraguay’s Minister of Information and Communication Technologies, Gustavo Villate, in a retaliatory move. The ministry did not specify the measures in the announcement. The action marks an escalation in Beijing’s response to Paraguay’s diplomatic alignment with Taiwan.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Supreme People’s Court, the People’s Bank of China, the National Financial Regulatory Administration and the China Securities Regulatory Commission jointly released six model cases on protecting the rights of financial consumers and investors. The cases span financial lending, fund wealth management, digital finance, life insurance and securities investment, focusing on standard-form clauses, fair dealing, suitability obligations, rights remedies and diversified dispute resolution.

TREE NEWS update: China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate said former deputy ministerial-level official Pan Liang, of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, has been indicted on charges of bribery and influence-based bribery. The case was concluded by the National Supervisory Commission and referred for prosecution, with the Huaibei Municipal People’s Procuratorate in Anhui filing the public indictment with the Huaibei Intermediate People’s Court.

TREE NEWS update: South Korea’s Finance Minister Lee Hyung-il said authorities will take market stabilization measures if necessary, citing rising global yields. The statement signals the government is prepared to act against volatility in Korean financial markets. Lee did not specify which measures would be used or when they might be deployed.

TREE NEWS update: The second meeting of the China-EU trade and investment consultation mechanism was held in Beijing on October 8-9. Both sides agreed the successful convening of the second meeting is a new starting point, not an end point. The phrasing indicates that despite differences, the two sides can find a path to properly resolve problems if they uphold mutual respect and equal benefit.

TREE NEWS update: China and the EU reached a trade and investment consensus in Beijing, including an understanding on hybrid vehicle trade and easier export approval for rare earth permanent magnets, while pledging to strengthen export-control dialogue. China’s Commerce Ministry separately rejected a joint statement by some economies on “structural overcapacity,” calling it trade protectionism in disguise. Beijing also unveiled measures to support tech firms’ listings and M&A.

TREE NEWS update: China’s securities regulator on October 9 released a draft revision of the rules governing publicly offered securities investment funds for public consultation, the first systemic overhaul since the current measures took effect in 2014. The CSRC said the changes aim to promote equity products, widen room for public fund innovation, improve fund governance and put investor interests first, as part of its action plan for high-quality public fund development.

TREE NEWS update: The European Union is reviewing MiCA, with a consultation examining whether non-custodial Bitcoin wallet developers should be required to obtain certification before offering their software to the public. ESMA said open-source development, self-custody, automated smart contracts and permissionless infrastructure should not automatically be treated as regulated intermediaries, while proposing a new regulated service for crypto asset service providers that give clients access to decentralized protocols. The review has not changed current rules; the European Commission will assess feedback and submit a report under MiCA Article 140 by June 30, 2027.

TREE NEWS update: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States has taken “absolutely isolating action” against Iran and will continue to seize Iranian cryptocurrency. Bessent made the remarks in comments on the US pressure campaign against Tehran. No further details on the scope or timing of the crypto seizures were provided.

TREE NEWS update: The US Department of Justice said on the 10th it is investigating whether CNN and four other television networks violated federal antitrust law. The probe follows a collective boycott by the five major outlets, which refused to cover White House events after President Trump barred reporters from CNN and two other news organizations from White House access.

TREE NEWS update: The Shanghai Stock Exchange issued a regulatory work letter to Fujian Dongbai Group Co. concerning its asset acquisition. The letter names the listed company, its directors, senior management, controlling shareholder and actual controller as the parties involved, and cites the asset acquisition as the matter under review. No further details of the acquisition were disclosed.

TREE NEWS update: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Senator Elizabeth Warren in a letter that the Treasury’s bond buyback program has been running since May 2024 and is welcomed by market participants, rejecting her claim that recent interventions are unprecedented. Bessent said the program aims to improve Treasury market liquidity, reduce volatility and secure better value for taxpayers.

TREE NEWS update: The Central Bank of Argentina will not allow crypto assets into the banking and payment system in the near term, said Juan Curutchet, head of financial and foreign exchange institutions supervision at the BCRA. The 2022 rule barring financial institutions from offering crypto services stays in place, he said, adding that Argentina’s economic fragility does not support such a move. Any lifting of the ban would depend on economic conditions and could be discussed in a second Milei term.

TREE NEWS update: Focus Media said it received conditional antitrust approval from China’s State Administration for Market Regulation for its planned acquisition of Chengdu Xinchao Media Group via share issuance and cash. The conditions, valid for five years, require honoring existing client contracts, maintaining service levels, capping actual annual transaction prices at the city-level prices of the prior 24 months, dropping exclusive-location rights and barring exclusivity or auto-renewal clauses in new and renewed contracts. The deal still needs Shenzhen Stock Exchange review and CSRC registration.

TREE NEWS update: Foxconn Industrial Internet said the US International Trade Commission launched a Section 337 investigation on October 9 into patent infringement claims by US-based Vicor Corporation. Vicor alleges the company and a controlled subsidiary infringed a patent covering a “vertical power delivery system.” The company said an internal review found the products involved are still in internal validation and assessment, and the probe has no material impact on current production, operations or results.

TREE NEWS update: The CFTC has proposed two measures aimed at separating prediction markets from casino gambling, setting the stage for a potential US Supreme Court battle over federal and state jurisdiction. The proposals seek to draw a regulatory line between event-based prediction contracts and games of chance as the agency asserts its authority over the sector.

TREE NEWS update: China Securities Regulatory Commission Chairman Wu Qing convened a symposium in Beijing on Oct. 10, where participants agreed the macroeconomy is stable and improving and that the capital market is operating soundly. CaiXin Securities chief economist Yuan Chuang said the meeting sent a positive signal and that the A-share market’s medium- to long-term upward trend remains unchanged.

TREE NEWS update: The US Department of Justice is investigating five television networks that stopped joint coverage of President Donald Trump’s events after the White House barred multiple news organizations from access. The antitrust division is examining CNN, NBC, CBS, Fox News and ABC, which share a pool arrangement for presidential events and video footage. DOJ spokesperson Emily Covington said a collective boycott among business competitors may violate the Sherman Antitrust Act.