MESSAGE
| DATE | 2021-05-01 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [Hangout - NYLXS] Chinese Newspeak - anti-trust : Terrorism
|
wsj.com
WSJ News Exclusive | China Beefs Up Antimonopoly Body Amid Regulatory Push
Jing Yang
7-9 minutes
HONG KONG—China’s antitrust watchdog is beefing up its senior ranks as
authorities step up efforts to rein in the country’s powerful technology
companies.
Dong Hongxia will take on a new role as a third deputy director-general
of the Antimonopoly Bureau, part of the powerful State Administration
for Market Regulation, according to people familiar with the matter. Ms.
Dong, currently director of a division responsible for reviewing
mergers, is an expert on antitrust issues and a frequent speaker at
seminars and events.
The appointment, expected to take effect in the coming months, would
mark the first time that the bureau has three deputy director-generals
at once—a reflection of the agency’s growing clout, the people said.
Several low-to-mid-level officials will be added to the bureau’s
merger-review divisions as it expands its reach and resources in the
widening antitrust crackdown, these people said.
The market regulator didn’t respond to a faxed request for comment.
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
Your browser does not support HTML5 video.
0:00 / 6:41
4:53
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
In less than six months, China’s tech giant Ant went from planning a
blockbuster IPO to restructuring in response to pressure from the
central bank. As the U.S. also takes aim at big tech, here’s how China
is moving faster. Photo illustration: Sharon Shi
China has been tightening the screws on its homegrown internet giants
since late last year. The market regulator earlier in April slapped a
record $2.8 billion fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. for
anticompetitive behavior after a monthslong investigation.
On Monday, the agency launched a probe into delivery giant Meituan. It
has also meted out smaller fines to dozens of companies for failing to
seek clearance on past deals.
One of the central targets in beefing up the Antimonopoly Bureau is
Chinese technology companies registered in offshore tax havens, who for
years were able to pursue mergers and acquisitions with little to no
regulatory oversight.
Chinese tech companies have used the structure, known as a variable
interest entity, to receive funding from foreign investors, though the
legality of antitrust regulations on such companies was unclear under
Chinese law.
Late last year, authorities moved to end the ambiguity, requiring
offshore-registered companies to seek antimonopoly clearance for any
such deals. At the same time, the Antimonopoly Bureau began turning its
attention to retroactive enforcement actions.
A Beijing expo display Friday for Alibaba, a company fined by China’s
market regulator for anticompetitive behavior.
Photo: Ng Han Guan/Associated Press
The bureau is now sitting on a backlog of roughly 1,700 cases in which
companies have been suspected of failing to file for regulatory review,
according to the people familiar with the new appointments.
The practice, known as “gun-jumping” in U.S. and European jurisdictions,
is a punishable offense under Chinese law, though it triggers only a
modest fine of up to 500,000 yuan, roughly equivalent to $77,000, if the
merger isn’t deemed to have resulted in a monopoly.
However, Chinese regulators can levy harsher penalties—including a
forced unwinding of the deal—if a merger or acquisition is deemed to
harm competition.
On Friday, the market regulator said it was imposing penalties for nine
additional gun-jumping cases, covering deals made by several companies
including Tencent Holdings Ltd. , ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing
Technology Co., retailer Suning Holdings Group and Ant Group Co. Each
was fined the maximum 500,000 yuan.
The heavy caseload, the people said, has driven the need for more
personnel and resources to be added to the bureau, which has seen its
profile rise quickly in recent months.
“This new top-down law enforcement campaign is a huge boost to this
small bureau,” said Angela Zhang, a law professor at the University of
Hong Kong.
The market regulator is planning to expand the number of employees
focused on antitrust by another 20 to 30 people, up from about 40 now,
Reuters reported earlier in April.
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
Your browser does not support HTML5 video.
0:00 / 6:41
4:57
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
Ant, Alibaba Show How China Reins in Big Tech Faster Than Other Countries
In less than six months, China’s tech giant Ant went from planning a
blockbuster IPO to restructuring in response to pressure from the
central bank. As the U.S. also takes aim at big tech, here’s how China
is moving faster. Photo illustration: Sharon Shi
In the past decade, many offshore-registered Chinese internet companies
grew quickly by snapping up stakes in smaller rivals or acquiring them
outright. Such behavior went virtually unchecked by regulators amid the
legal ambiguity.
Tencent has been perhaps the best example of this. Over the years, it
became an investment powerhouse, buying stakes in hundreds of startups
and sending the market value of its portfolio to roughly a quarter of a
trillion dollars at one point.
The State Administration for Market Regulation was established in March
2018, during a broad reshuffle of central government agencies. It
absorbed several other agencies and was given a comprehensive mandate
that spans from business registration to food and drug safety.
During the overhaul, authorities established the Antimonopoly Bureau,
consolidating anticompetition functions that previously resided in the
Ministry of Commerce and in the National Development and Reform
Commission, the state’s main economic planner.
Write to Jing Yang at Jing.Yang-at-wsj.com
--
So many immigrant groups have swept through our town
that Brooklyn, like Atlantis, reaches mythological
proportions in the mind of the world - RI Safir 1998
http://www.mrbrklyn.com
DRM is THEFT - We are the STAKEHOLDERS - RI Safir 2002
http://www.nylxs.com - Leadership Development in Free Software
http://www.brooklyn-living.com
Being so tracked is for FARM ANIMALS and extermination camps,
but incompatible with living as a free human being. -RI Safir 2013
_______________________________________________
Hangout mailing list
Hangout-at-nylxs.com
http://lists.mrbrklyn.com/mailman/listinfo/hangout
|
|
