CSRC: Adhere to "pursuing the main offenders," strictly and swiftly punish illegal reductions in holdings, and focus on cracking down on insider trading, market manipulation, and other illegal activities

Vice Chairman Chen Huaping's Speech at the 2025 "5·15 National Investor Protection Promotion Day" Event

Respected Dean Gao Xiaoli, Chief Prosecutor Miao Shengming, Director Fu Wanjun, esteemed guests, and colleagues:

Hello everyone! Today, we gather together to witness and launch the 2025 seventh "5·15 National Investor Protection Promotion Day" event. Here, on behalf of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all relevant units, news media, and friends from all walks of life who have long cared for and supported the reform and development of the capital market and the protection of investors' rights! I extend sincere greetings to all investors!

Protecting investors, especially the legitimate rights and interests of small and medium-sized investors, is the most important work and core task of the CSRC, and it is a concentrated embodiment of the political and people-oriented nature of capital market work. For more than a year, the CSRC has implemented the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Central Financial Work Conference, the Central Economic Work Conference, and the Central Politburo meeting on September 26 last year, as well as the important deployment of the new "National Nine Articles," integrating investor protection into the entire chain of securities regulation, collaborating with relevant departments to exert joint efforts, and introducing a package of policies to support market stability and expectations, thereby more effectively protecting the legitimate rights and interests of investors. In the next step, the CSRC will further build consensus with relevant parties and all sectors of society, collaboratively promote investor protection work, continuously improve the long-term mechanism for investor protection, and effectively enhance investors' trust and confidence in the capital market.

First, further promote the high-quality development of the capital market, fundamentally consolidating the foundation for protecting investors' rights and interests. Effective protection of investors' rights must be built on a solid foundation of high-quality development of the capital market. The CSRC always practices the concept of finance for the people, fully launching a new round of capital market reforms, promoting high-quality development of the capital market, and promptly introducing a package of policy measures to deepen the reform of the Sci-Tech Innovation Board and the ChiNext, further enhancing the inclusiveness and adaptability of the system, and vigorously supporting technological innovation and the development of new productive forces. Together with all parties, we will implement a "combination punch" of policies to stabilize the market, effectively promote the increase of medium- and long-term capital entering the market, and continuously release new development vitality on a stable foundation, enhancing investor confidence. Recently, the annual report disclosure of listed companies has concluded, with over 5,400 listed companies disclosing their 2024 annual reports, nearly 70% of which announced dividends, with a total dividend amount of 2.39 trillion yuan, setting a new historical high. We will continue to increase policy support, guiding listed companies to actively use cash dividends, repurchases, and other methods to reward investors, effectively enhancing investors' sense of gain.

Second, optimize and improve the investor protection system and mechanism, solidifying the institutional foundation for investor protection. The rule of law is the foundation of the capital market, playing a fundamental role in stabilizing expectations and benefiting long-term development, and it is an important support for protecting investors' legitimate rights and interests. Under the leadership of the Central Financial Commission, the CSRC actively participates in the drafting of financial laws, vigorously promotes the revision of the Securities Investment Fund Law, advances the formulation and revision of the regulations on the supervision of listed companies and securities companies, and actively cooperates with judicial authorities to research and formulate judicial interpretations on civil compensation for insider trading and market manipulation, criminal judicial interpretations on insider trading, and judicial interpretations on the crime of breach of trust harming the interests of listed companies, continuously improving the legal system of the capital market and building a "safety net" for the protection of investors' legitimate rights and interests Today, the Supreme People's Court and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) will jointly issue the "Guiding Opinions on Strictly and Fairly Enforcing Law and Justice to Serve and Guarantee the High-Quality Development of the Capital Market," further strengthening the collaboration between judicial and administrative bodies, enhancing the protection of investors' rights and interests, and promoting the high-quality development of the capital market. At the same time, to further improve the scientific and democratic nature of securities and futures legislation, the CSRC has established a review mechanism for the protection of small and medium-sized investors in the formulation and amendment of major policies and regulations, clearly stating that the opinions of a wide range of investors, especially small and medium-sized investors, should be fully considered in the rule-making process, enhancing the transparency and fairness of institutional rules, and plans to establish grassroots legislative contact points in the capital market to regularly solicit opinions and suggestions from investors.

Third, promote the high-quality development of securities and fund institutions, and enhance investor service levels. Recently, the CSRC released the "Action Plan for Promoting the High-Quality Development of Public Funds," which has received a positive market response. The next step is to ensure implementation, strengthen the binding of interests between fund companies and investors, focus on solving issues such as the "guaranteed returns" of funds, enrich products that match the risk tolerance of small and medium-sized investors, and provide high-quality services to meet the needs of residents' wealth management. At the same time, responsibilities of securities companies and sales institutions must be reinforced, urging them to enhance governance levels and compliance risk control capabilities, continuously optimize investor services, and strictly implement the investor suitability system, allowing investors to better understand product risks, make prudent investment decisions, and advocate for rational and long-term investments.

Fourth, strictly crack down on illegal activities in securities and futures to create a safe investment environment for investors. The CSRC has always adhered to a regulatory approach that is "sharp and pointed," continuously improving the standardization of regulatory enforcement and the precision of punishing illegal activities. In accordance with the State Council's requirements for comprehensive punishment and prevention of financial fraud in the capital market, efforts will be accelerated to build a comprehensive prevention and punishment system for financial fraud, strictly cracking down on malicious fraud behaviors such as fabricating business and abusing accounting policies. We will insist on pursuing the "primary offenders" and increase the investigation and punishment of major shareholders and actual controllers of fraudulent companies. We will strictly and swiftly punish illegal reductions in holdings, especially behaviors that disrupt the order of the capital market, such as circumventing reductions and disguised reductions. Focused efforts will be made to combat insider trading, market manipulation, and other serious illegal activities that harm the interests of small and medium-sized investors, and to crack down hard on illegal stock recommendations and illegal agency rights protection activities, maintaining a healthy market ecology. At the same time, we will leverage the exemplary role of typical cases to clarify the law through cases, achieving the goal of "handling one case, deterring one party, and governing one area."

Fifth, support harmed investors in legally safeguarding their rights and promote diversified resolution of securities and futures disputes. Last year, with strong support from the Supreme People's Court, two special representative lawsuits, Jin Tong Ling and Mei Shang Ecology, were initiated and have made new progress. We will continue to deepen communication and cooperation with judicial authorities, promote the establishment of a normalized working mechanism for special representative lawsuits, and ensure that securities representative lawsuits are conducted legally, prudently, and efficiently, further leveraging the institutional role of special representative lawsuits in collectively resolving group disputes; deeply practice the "Fengqiao Experience" of the new era, fully utilizing mediation's foundational role in dispute resolution; actively guide and support willing and capable operating entities to provide advance compensation to eligible investors in securities false statement cases within the legal framework; and further enhance the effectiveness of the administrative enforcement party's commitment system in providing timely and effective relief to investors And fully leverage the role of securities and futures lawyers to provide public legal assistance to small and medium-sized investors, resolving conflicts and disputes at the source, and maintaining market harmony and stability.

Comrades!

Investor protection is a long-term task and a systematic project. In the next step, the China Securities Regulatory Commission will further unite all parties, persistently carry out various investor protection work, continuously strengthen the construction of investor protection systems and mechanisms, and achieve breakthroughs in typical cases, effectively enhancing the quality and effectiveness of investor protection.

Thank you all!

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