The Law Society is stepping up its lobbying campaign after unsuccessful talks with the Chinese government failed to change rules that appear to prohibit Chinese companies from listing on AIM.
China Law Council chairman Neil Sampson has been instructed by the Lord Mayor of London to pursue the matter and is writing to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and the China Securities Regulatory Commission for what her terms the “clarification on the interpretation of regulations”.
He added: “During the visit to Beijing, the meetings did not produce a clear explanation of the Chinese position on the regulation.”
He said that, although it seems that current regulations appear to block the listing of Chinese companies in the UK, Chinese regulators had “suggested that this was not the way that the regulations should be interpreted”.
Sampson is also asking if Chinese regulators have any preference for Euronext-bound listings over those bound for AIM.
Last June Chinese regulatory bodies circulated a guidance note requiring offshore holding companies, which are set up to acquire and float the assets of Chinese companies, to demonstrate three years of profit prior to seeking approvals for a foreign listing.
