SEC rethinking auditing penalties, lawyers say

The Beijing-based association had 224 member companies as of the end of 2013, of which 65 were listed in the US.

Estela Kuo, deputy secretary-general of the association, told China Daily that it would be the first time for a Chinese mainland entity to play such a role in a US regulatory proceeding.

US-listed Chinese companies outside the Zhongguancun area are being encouraged to join the organization in order to best inform the court of the complexities of the case, said Kuo.

In 2012, the SEC commenced administrative action against the accounting firms hired by Chinese companies after a number of failed attempts to obtain company information for accounting fraud investigations.

Lawyers from both nations urged a deep government-to-government dialogue in order to bridge the law differences that some say have hampered Chinese companies seeking a US public offering.

Industry insiders said the ban, which would hurt US-listed Chinese companies (mostly Internet and technology enterprises), has nothing to do with discrimination, despite media reports in China suggesting otherwise.

Unlike short sellers who seek to profit from pushing down the value of Chinese stocks, the SEC is trying to maintain the integrity of US equity markets, said Bartel.

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