Data Byte: NASDAQ’s Chinese biotechs may look to Hong Kong for secondary listings as House passes auditing bill

Pending legislation that would tighten disclosure requirements for foreign companies may push NASDAQ-listed Chinese biotechs to follow in the footsteps of BeiGene and Zai and seek out secondary listings in Hong Kong. 

On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would prohibit a company’s securities from being listed on any U.S. exchange if the company has failed to comply with audits by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) for three years in a row. The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act would apply to all foreign-based companies; however, sponsors Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) have made it made clear that China is the target of the bill. ...