File photo: In this illustrated picture taken on July 7, 2021, the application logo of the Chinese online ride-hailing giant Didi can be seen through the magnifying glass on the computer screen. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration

: The following is a reaction to the ride-hailing giant Didi Global's decision to delist from the New York Stock Exchange and seek a listing in Hong Kong, succumbing to Chinese regulators’ concerns about data security.

Didi advanced its $4.4 billion US initial public offering in July, which clashed with Chinese authorities, despite being asked to shelve it during a review of its data practices.

SHIFARA SAMSUDEEN, Lightstream research analyst, published an article on the research platform SMARTKARMA:

"As we expected, Didi will first delist from the NYSE and begin to apply for listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company is already facing a class action lawsuit in the United States, and we believe that Didi will repurchase at the same IPO price as the United States. Its stock is $14 per share. However, given that the country will strictly control its use of user personal data (put it at shortcomings) and location-related issues, such as liquidity.

"Beijing has also issued a warning to China's entire Internet industry, ready to face more regulation, and may allow foreign investors to stay away from Chinese technology stocks for a period of time."

Zhan Kai, lawyer of Shanghai Donghe Concord Law Firm:

"Technically speaking, Didi's listing in the United States does not comply with China's data security regulations.

"From a political point of view, China and the United States have so far failed to reach an agreement on the supervision of US listed companies. Obviously, the Chinese government hopes that companies can choose Hong Kong as the listing location."

FUND MANAGER MEGATRUST INVESTMENT (HK), Hong Kong CEO Wang Qi:

"China's ADR is facing increasing regulatory challenges from the US and Chinese authorities. For most companies, this is like walking on an eggshell, trying to please both parties. Delisting will only make things easier."

Li Nan, associate professor of finance at Shanghai Jiaotong University:

"Well, I'm not surprised. This is the only way for Didi to survive, which may be a good thing for investors in the US market. In addition to data security, Didi has other related issues. There are also financial services embedded in their platforms. They withhold payments to drivers, charge high fees to drivers, issue high-interest loans, etc. Due to the lack of proper bad supervision, carpooling is inherently problematic in the behavior of drivers.

"I think Didi is not eligible to be listed anywhere until it separates data platform services from financial services and establishes an effective agreement to manage and ensure the responsibilities and benefits of the drive."

Justin Tang, Head of Asian Studies, UNITED FIRST PARTNERS, Singapore:

"Considering the post-IPO crackdown, Didi's listing was largely expected. It will now set a precedent for other US listed companies, especially those with data concerns.

"The crackdown started with Ant Financial's poor initial public offering. The Chinese government has indicated that it will exceed market expectations. It will take some time for sentiment regarding the Chinese name to unfreeze."

KENNY NG, Strategist of Hong Kong Everbright Sun Hung Kai Securities:

“Didi’s proposed delisting in the United States and listing on Hong Kong stocks is believed to have a significant impact on the site selection decisions of large technology stocks in the future. At the same time, this incident has convinced the market that the current trend of industry supervision of mainland technology stocks will continue, and today The decline in the share prices of Hong Kong-listed technology stocks also reflects this factor.

"On the other hand, Didi itself has its own unique factors. Because Didi's business involves more data on customer information, this has caused the regulators to pay special attention to it."

Ming Lu, Research Analyst, Shanghai AEQUITAS:

“I don’t think this change will have any positive impact on Didi’s investors. The authorities have not yet announced the final penalties for Didi, and the investigation is still going on for more than 100 days. So far, the risks facing Didi and its shareholders are still unlimited."

KYLE RODDA, IG Analyst, Melbourne:

"In the short to medium term, this means that some markets that are truly affected by global trade and the geopolitics of the United States and China will experience volatility. You may start to see Hong Kong stocks face some pressure. Hong Kong stocks often seem to raise funds in the United States, but will use their own bases. Based in China, and get most of the profits from the Chinese economy.

"In the long run, this is more important because it will become one of the frogs in the beaker scenario, in which the economic relationship and entanglement between the United States and China will be very, very slowly decoupled from the global financial system. interconnected."

TOM NUNLIST, senior analyst of TRIVIUM CHINA, a Beijing consulting company:

"At this point, my two main thoughts are: If it is confirmed that CAC is indeed the main player behind the push, then the regulator will shine. This will further indicate that its power and influence are rising.

"The obvious issue is data security, but we still don't have a deep understanding of what the specific issue is. This is an unresolved issue."

(Reporting by Kevin Buckland in Tokyo, Alun John and Scott Murdoch in Hong Kong, Anshuman Daga in Singapore, and Josh Horwitz in Shanghai; Editing by Richard Pullin)

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