The US Securities Regulatory Commission plans to tighten disclosure rules for foreign companies, with the goal of targeting Chinese securities

The Zhitong Finance App learned that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will take a key step on Wednesday to begin formulating new regulations to clarify which foreign companies can apply more relaxed information disclosure requirements.

According to the announcement, the agency will hold a public meeting at 1 p.m. Washington time. This is one year since Republican Member Mark Uyeda called for revisions to the definition of overseas listed companies. Uyeda specifically pointed out at the time that some Chinese companies listed only in the US still enjoy relaxed reporting obligations.

The meeting will discuss whether to initiate a public comment process on potential new regulations, but the SEC has yet to disclose the details of the rules. A spokesperson for the agency and Ujeda himself declined to comment.

Speaking at Harvard University last year, Uyeda said that companies with major ownership and management overseas are classified as “foreign private issuers” — this means that even if their securities are only traded on US exchanges, they only need to submit annual reports and sporadic updates on important matters.

Citing 2024 congressional research data, Uyeda said that of 265 publicly traded Chinese companies in the US, nearly 90% are not listed on other exchanges.

He stressed that in contrast, US companies listed on the same exchange are required to fully comply with securities laws, including quarterly financial reports, power of attorney rules, and timely disclosure of “important matters” such as mergers and acquisitions and director separations.

Uyeda previously suggested, “This issue is worth paying attention to. The SEC should consider limiting the eligibility of 'foreign private issuers' to companies whose securities are listed on overseas exchanges at the same time. ” If implemented, this rule adjustment may reshape the information disclosure framework for the listing of Chinese securities in the US.