Chinese Premier Li Keqiang voices support for tech listings as China-US audit deal remains in limbo
- China will support online platform companies and digital economy enterprises to raise capital in domestic and overseas markets, Li says
- Plans by Chinese tech companies to go public in New York have largely stalled after Beijing launched a probe into Didi Global
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has broken his silence to voice support for the country’s tech firms to go public at home and abroad, echoing the views expressed by Vice-Premier Liu He this week at a high-level meeting chaired by China’s top political advisory body chairman Wang Yang.
China will support platform companies and digital economy enterprises to raise capital in domestic and overseas stock markets “in accordance with relevant regulations and laws”, Li said on Wednesday at a symposium with local government heads from 12 provinces, including Guangdong and Zhejiang.
This is the first time that Li, the second most powerful official in China’s Communist Party, has publicly commented on Chinese companies’ hopes to go public overseas since Beijing tightened listing rules and launched data security investigations into several firms last year.
Li also said the government would create a stable, transparent and fair regulatory and business environment for the platform and digital economy, and keep opening up cross-border trade and welcoming foreign capital.
The symposium took place during Li’s tour of the northwest province of Yunnan to collect views on how to restore economic activities amid rigid Covid-19 control measures.
Covid-19 lockdowns in Shanghai and beyond, as well as regulatory tightening by Beijing over the past 18 months, have hit Chinese tech companies hard.
