The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday added Baidu Inc. to a growing list of companies that may get kicked off American stock exchanges.
The SEC’s publication of the businesses’ names is required by a 2020 U.S. law that started a three-year clock for firms to comply with inspection requirements that cover all public companies in the U.S. The SEC also added Futu Holdings Limited, Nocera Inc., iQIYI Inc. and CASI Pharmaceuticals Inc. to its provisional list for possible delisting.
Wall Street’s main watchdog has long been expected to crack down on about 200 New York-traded firms with parent companies based in China and Hong Kong because the jurisdictions refuse to allow the inspections. Still, the SEC’s recent publication of companies has jarred investors who’d been hoping for a deal between regulators in Beijing and Washington.
Baidu and iQIYI stocks slid in premarket trading Thursday.
