Financial News
Author: Zhai Ziqian
2020-06-22 16:28
Date of last update: 2020-06-22 16:28The Chamber of Commerce of Listed Companies in Hong Kong proposed to postpone the 2% free purchase rate limit. Chairman Huang Guilin said he hoped the government would include the measures in the "toolbox", emphasizing that prevention is a precautionary measure.
Huang Guilin said that due to fluctuations in the market environment, the Chamber of Commerce recommended that the government and the SFC suspend the right to restrict free purchases at an appropriate time. It is recommended to suspend the right to purchase for 9 to 12 months, for example, when the market conditions return to normal.
He believes that the benefits of suspending the restrictions on free purchase rights include the increase in shareholdings by major shareholders, which helps stabilize the company's stock price; it helps to reduce overall market volatility; ease investor concerns and panic; increase the holding of joint stock companies for Hong Kong society as a whole and major shareholders Of all shareholders can benefit.
Huang Guilin added that it is recommended to maintain all disclosure requirements during the suspension period, and even tighten the disclosure requirements, and proposed that measures can be introduced to prevent major shareholders from using the moratorium to limit profits, such as a lock-up period of more than 6 months, prohibiting major shareholders from selling shares Or options, described as the most effective and direct method.
However, Huang Guilin said that no proposal has been formally submitted to the Hong Kong government at present, but said that he had contact from time to time in the past, and this time the proposal will be submitted to the government. He described the proposal as not merely helping major shareholders, not for specific companies or families, but for the development of Hong Kong.
It was proposed in 2008 but was rejected by the SFC
Regarding the 2008 Chamber of Commerce, which had made similar recommendations, but was eventually rejected by the SFC, Huang Guilin believed that the current market environment is not as dominated by the financial crisis as in 2008, involving multiple influences such as the US election year, epidemic situation, and trade wars. , The SFC can focus on considering putting relevant proposals into the toolbox.
Hong Kong Listed Companies Chamber of Commerce