BEIJING – Chinese language regulators are zeroing in on one of many nation’s most distinguished synthetic intelligence (AI) and computing firms, after a probe uncovered how the chairman’s spouse secretly traded 150 million yuan (S$28.6 million) of firm inventory throughout a year-long mega rally.
Dawning Data Trade, one in every of a plethora of Chinese language expertise leaders blacklisted by the US, described how Ms Zhang Dihua pocketed 590,000 yuan from 232 trades between March 3, 2023, and March 14, 2024. The corporate’s shares surged greater than 50 per cent throughout the interval.
That was when buyers poured into firms anticipated to trip a wave of AI improvement throughout a rustic locked in a tech race with the US. Dawning, which disclosed the affair after an inquiry from the inventory alternate, apologised for the incident however careworn that Ms Zhang stored her husband, Mr Li Guojie, at the hours of darkness.
The corporate’s shares rose as a lot as 4.1 per cent on April 12. Chinese language regulators have pledged to crack down on insider buying and selling and different market irregularities that persist on comparatively younger bourses, in a enterprise surroundings that usually prizes connections.
Nonetheless, the uncommon public admission threatens to tar one of many nation’s most influential tech business figures. Backed by China’s elite science analysis institute, Dawning is one in every of a handful of home gamers creating high-performance chips and servers for state-sponsored tasks.
Washington sanctioned the corporate in 2019 for its position in supercomputer improvement, successfully reducing it off from American software program and elements.
The 80-year-old Mr Li, who has been Dawning’s chairman over the previous decade, is a famend academician and member of the Chinese language Academy of Engineering since 1995.
The Purdue College-trained pc scientist led Dawning by a computing increase spurred by Beijing’s efforts to exchange American expertise. Extra lately, buyers recognized Dawning as one of many potential winners in AI.
Ms Zhang’s buying and selling began two weeks earlier than the shares launched into their rally, which peaked round June 2023. The inventory then gained one other 83 per cent between a trough in February and March 11 of 2024, as pleasure over machine-generated content material rekindled.
Her actions had been thought-about short-term buying and selling by the partner of an government. Dawning mentioned Ms Zhang has turned in all earnings in compliance with securities regulation. However the firm emphasised the transactions didn’t quantity to insider buying and selling primarily based on non-public data, the submitting mentioned, for the reason that chairman was not consulted.
Dawning mentioned it’s going to conduct associated coaching for executives and that Mr Li and his spouse will abide by legal guidelines and rules. BLOOMBERG
