JC Master Legal News Issue 1205

Key Takeaways for This Issue

The China Securities Regulatory Commission has promulgated the “Regulations on the Supervision of Board Secretaries of Listed Companies.”

On April 24, the China Securities Regulatory Commission promulgated the “Regulations on the Supervision of Board Secretaries of Listed Companies,” which shall take effect on May 24, 2026. A transitional period shall apply from the date of entry into force of these Regulations until December 31, 2027.

The Supreme People’s Procuratorate has released typical cases of intellectual property protection.

On April 22, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate issued the “Notice on the Issuance of Typical Cases of Intellectual Property Protection by Procuratorial Organs.”

The People’s Court Daily has published the list of the Top Ten Typical Cases for 2025.

Recently, the People’s Court Daily announced the Top Ten Cases of 2025.

Finance and Capital Markets

FINANCE & CAPITAL MARKETS
 

The People’s Bank of China has released an overview of financial market operations for March 2026.

On April 20, the People’s Bank of China released data on financial market performance for March 2026.

Data show that in March, average daily turnover in the money market—both interbank lending and bond repurchase—rose year over year, while the monthly average rates for DR001, DR007, and R001 declined month over month. Net government‑bond financing fell, whereas net corporate‑bond financing increased, with the outstanding balance of bonds under custody reaching RMB 200 trillion. Overseas institutions held RMB 3.2 trillion in bonds in China, and cumulative panda bond issuance totaled RMB 84.24 billion. Trading volume in RMB derivatives rose 89.7% year over year, while trading in treasury‑bond futures declined compared with the same period last year. The outstanding balances of bills accepted and discounted stood at RMB 20.7 trillion and RMB 15.7 trillion, respectively, with a high share attributable to small, medium, and micro enterprises. Meanwhile, the foreign‑exchange, gold, and equity markets all released their monthly operating data, along with breakdowns of holder composition and trading concentration in the interbank bond market.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission has promulgated the “Regulations on the Supervision of Board Secretaries of Listed Companies.”

On April 24, the China Securities Regulatory Commission promulgated the “Regulations on the Supervision of Board Secretaries of Listed Companies,” which shall take effect on May 24, 2026. A transitional period is established from the date of entry into force of these Regulations until December 31, 2027. During this transitional period, any provisions regarding the appointment or concurrent positions of board secretaries of listed companies that are inconsistent with the requirements of these Regulations shall be gradually brought into compliance with the relevant provisions herein.

Regarding part-time employment, some suggestions proposed further clarifying positions that may give rise to conflicts of interest. After careful consideration, the China Securities Regulatory Commission has adopted these views and specified that a board secretary may not concurrently hold the positions of general manager, deputy general manager in charge of business operations, or chief financial officer. If a board secretary also serves in other roles at the listed company, clear distinctions must be drawn between the duties of the board secretary and those of the other positions, ensuring sufficient time and energy to independently fulfill the responsibilities of the board secretary. With respect to eligibility for the position, some have suggested relaxing the requirements, while others have advocated imposing stricter limitations. Upon review, it has been determined that possessing relevant work experience and professional expertise is conducive to better performance of duties. Taking into account the practical needs of the role, financial industry experience has been added as one category of qualifying experience. Furthermore, individuals who have served for an extended period as a board secretary or securities affairs representative at a listed company may be deemed to have “other work experience relevant to the performance of board secretary duties.”
 

Business and Corporations

COMMERCIAL & CORPORATE
 

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology convened a symposium on future‑oriented industries to outline plans for their cultivation and development.

On April 21, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology convened a symposium on enterprises in emerging industries.

The meeting focused on areas such as biomanufacturing, quantum technology, display materials, hydrogen energy, and commercial spaceflight, during which it heard reports on corporate operations and gathered opinions and suggestions. The meeting emphasized the need to strengthen coordinated planning and forward-looking deployment for emerging industries, refine mechanisms for technological foresight, and advance the development of pilot zones; systematically prioritize research and development of original, cutting-edge technologies, and bolster scenario-driven innovation and collaborative innovation across industrial chains; improve differentiated support policies and enhance policy frameworks covering innovation, financial assistance, and talent cultivation; and underscore the importance of balancing development with security, while prudently exploring regulatory approaches tailored to the characteristics of future‑oriented industries.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has organized the recommendation of China–foreign SME cooperation zones for 2026.

On April 21, the General Office of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the “Notice on Organizing Recommendations for the 2026 China–Foreign SME Cooperation Zones.”

The Notice specifies that applications shall be submitted on a voluntary basis by municipal-level authorities responsible for small and medium-sized enterprises; provincial-level authorities will accept the applications, conduct a preliminary review, and organize on-site spot checks before making recommendations based on merit. Each province, autonomous region, and municipality directly under the central government may recommend no more than two entities, while separately listed cities and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps may recommend no more than one; applications exceeding these limits will not be accepted. The Notice further requires that applicant zones meet the eligibility criteria set forth in the Interim Measures for the Administration of China–Foreign SME Cooperation Zones, with slightly more flexible standards permitted for the central and western regions and the Northeast. Any instance of false reporting or concealment of illegal or non-compliant activities, once verified, will result in immediate disqualification. Submission of application materials must be completed by August 15, 2026, and the managing entity must not be a newly established legal entity; moreover, it may not serve as the basis for staffing allocations in approval processes.

The State Administration for Market Regulation is soliciting public comments on the Measures for the Administration of the National-Recommended Voluntary Certification System.

On April 22, 2026, the State Administration for Market Regulation released the “Administrative Measures for the Nationally Unified Implementation of a Voluntary Certification System (Draft for Public Comment),” with the deadline for submitting feedback set for May 22, 2026.

The Measures consist of twenty-one articles, clearly stipulating that the nationally unified voluntary certification system applies to products, management systems, services, and other fields, and is subject to unified administration, joint implementation, and dynamic adjustment. They set forth provisions regarding project initiation proposals, approval procedures, basic certification standards, certification rules, a unified numbering system, technical committees, and pilot‑verification requirements. The measures further specify that the selection of certification bodies shall adhere to the principles of competence first, fair competition, and appropriate scale; entities seeking to operate must meet criteria such as relevant certification experience, a sufficient number of certificates, independent resource allocation, and a clean record for the past two years. Certification personnel are required to be registered or accredited before they may practice. A mechanism for evaluating implementation outcomes and for revising or abolishing the system has been established, and certification bodies are prohibited from filing or using rules or logos that are identical to or likely to cause confusion with the national voluntary certification system.

The National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration have revised the inter-provincial electricity spot trading rules.

On April 24, 2026, the General Office of the National Development and Reform Commission and the Comprehensive Department of the National Energy Administration issued the “Reply on Revising the Inter-Provincial Electricity Spot Trading Rules.”

The revised “Inter-Provincial Electricity Spot Trading Rules” have been approved in principle and will apply to inter-provincial day-ahead and intraday physical energy trading within the coverage areas of State Grid Corporation of China, Inner Mongolia Electric Power Co., Ltd., and other relevant entities. The rules clearly define market participants as power generators, retail electricity suppliers, electricity consumers, new types of market entities, grid operators, as well as dispatching and trading institutions. They specify provisions on registration and withdrawal, trading products, trading pathways, transmission tariffs and network losses, centralized auction clearing, security verification, deviation handling, metering and settlement, risk management, market suspension, information disclosure, contract management, and exemption clauses. In addition, the rules propose exploring avenues for direct participation by end‑users in the inter‑provincial electricity spot market and call for the refinement of supporting measures related to metering, settlement, and risk prevention.

The Ministry of Commerce and the State Administration for Market Regulation have issued the Action Plan for Standardization in the Service Trade.

On April 17, 2026, the Ministry of Commerce and the State Administration for Market Regulation released the “Action Plan for Standardization in Service Trade (2026–2030).”

The Action Plan sets out that by 2030, a service‑trade standards system covering multiple sectors and the entire value chain will be essentially in place. It emphasizes improving standards development and implementation oversight, fostering coordinated progress among mandatory standards, industry‑specific group standards, and enterprise standards, and strengthening the adoption and application of international standards. Priority areas include international travel, international transport, agricultural services, professional services such as intellectual property and inspection and testing, distinctive services in culture, education, and traditional Chinese medicine, as well as digital trade and green service trade. At the same time, it calls for advancing the development of standards related to data security and privacy protection, cross‑border data flows, and platform construction, while encouraging participation in the formulation of international standards and the building of relevant international organizations.
 

Taxation

TAXATION

The Ministry of Transport has released the first batch of fiscal, tax, and financial preferential policies for the transportation sector in 2026.

On April 22, the Financial Audit Department of the Ministry of Transport released the “Catalogue of Major National Fiscal, Tax, and Financial Preferential Policies Pertaining to the Transportation Sector (First Issue, 2026).”

As of April 14, 2026, the catalog lists a total of 31 policies, covering subsidies and awards for integrated freight hubs, the operation and tax administration of online freight platforms, the cultivation of leading enterprises in the transport and logistics sector, interest subsidies on equipment‑upgrade loans, interest subsidies on loans to small, medium, and micro enterprises, interest subsidies on loans for the service sector and personal consumption, as well as matters related to value‑added tax, import duties, and export tax rebates or exemptions. Key measures pertaining to the transportation industry include: implementing subsidy rates of 40%, 50%, or 60% for integrated freight hubs, depending on the region; requiring online freight platforms to retain transaction records for no less than three years and tax‑related documentation for ten years, while prohibiting the falsification of transaction, transportation, and settlement data; and allowing certain public transportation services to opt for simplified VAT accounting.

Litigation and Arbitration

LITIGATION & ARBITRATION

The Supreme People’s Procuratorate has released typical cases of intellectual property protection.

On April 22, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate issued the “Notice on the Issuance of Typical Cases of Intellectual Property Protection by Procuratorial Organs.”

This release features 10 representative cases, spanning criminal, civil, administrative, and public-interest litigation functions of the procuratorial organs. The cases address issues such as protests against trademark invalidation decisions, oversight of fraudulent copyright litigation, criminal protection of trade secrets, the unlawful provision of trade secrets to entities outside China, copyright infringement involving industrial software and pharmaceutical coding software, counterfeiting of service trademarks, crackdowns on end-to-end production and sale of counterfeit registered trademarks, and administrative public-interest litigation concerning geographical indications. Collectively, these cases illustrate how the law addresses key legal principles, including the determination of a trade secret’s non‑public nature and commercial value, the delineation of rights between trademarks and business names, the protection of software technical measures, the handling of service‑trademark cases, and the standardized use and regulation of geographical indications.

The People’s Court Daily has published the list of the Top Ten Typical Cases for 2025.

Recently, the People’s Court Daily announced the Top Ten Cases of 2025.

The cases selected cover such matters as intentional homicide involving minors, transnational telecom fraud criminal groups, child trafficking, betrothal‑related rape, infringement of corporate goodwill by minors, death benefits for workers in IVF‑related accidents, tattooing among minors, unlawful termination of labor contracts, large‑scale cross‑jurisdictional enforcement, and public interest litigation concerning illegal trespass into nature reserves.

The National Office for Building a Quality‑Driven Nation has released the Annual Report on China’s Efforts to Combat Intellectual Property Infringement and Counterfeit Goods.

On April 24, the Office of the National Coordination and Promotion Leading Group for Building a Country Strong in Quality released the “Annual Report on China’s Efforts to Combat Infringement and Counterfeit Goods (2025).”

The Report, published in both Chinese and English, summarizes progress in combating intellectual property infringement and counterfeiting across seven key areas—coordinated advancement, legal safeguards, administrative enforcement, judicial protection, regulatory services, public awareness and guidance, and international cooperation—focusing on the period of the 14th Five-Year Plan and work through 2025. Its content covers the formulation and revision of IP-related laws and regulations, punitive damages, the identification of unfair competition in the platform economy, online transactions and copyright protection, governance of priority products such as food and drugs, as well as specific enforcement campaigns—including “Qinglang,” “Jianwang,” “Kunlun,” and “Tiequan”—and cross-border law enforcement cooperation.

The Supreme People’s Procuratorate has released typical public interest litigation cases concerning the protection of marine ecological environment and resources.

Recently, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate released the “Typical Cases of Public Interest Litigation for the Protection of Marine Ecological and Environmental Resources.”

A total of six cases were released this time, including five administrative public interest litigation cases and one civil public interest litigation case, covering such areas as coastal wetlands, nature reserves, coastlines, uninhabited islands and reefs, ship‑borne oil spills, and aquaculture effluent. The cases demonstrate that procuratorial organs have advanced remediation primarily through urging administrative agencies to perform their duties in accordance with the law, conducting consultations, issuing prosecutorial recommendations, filing civil public interest lawsuits, and applying for property preservation measures. In terms of liability determination, these cases involve clarifying ship‑leasing and insurance contract relationships and establishing joint tort liability; regarding governance mechanisms, they encompass inter‑agency coordination, source‑level prevention, routine patrols, technological evidence‑gathering, and damage assessment and restoration.