What’s new: A social media influencer with 4 million followers has been charged for allegedly luring investors to make millions of dollars in trades on a bogus online platform, resulting in heavy losses, China’s securities regulator announced on Friday.
Starting from 2021, the Shanghai-based influencer, surnamed Xu, allegedly advertised on Weibo and in livestreaming sessions to attract people to buy and sell exchange traded fund (ETF) futures through an unauthorized app, according to an announcement by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
Within a year, more than 350 people had made trades using the app developed by Xu and related associates, with investments totaling more than 30 million yuan ($4.5 million), according to the CSRC. These investors often suffered heavy losses, the regulator said.
Xu was charged by a local procuratorate, the agency that serves as a public prosecutor in China, for suspected illegal operations, facilitating cyber crime activities, and false advertising.
The background: While the CSRC’s announcement didn’t give the full name of the influencer, the profile appears to fit that of Xu Xiaofeng, who goes by “Xu Xiaofeng in Shanghai” on Weibo.
He has been banned by the social media platform from posting due to “violations of relevant laws,” his account shows. His last post was in July 2021.
Xu controls at least two Shanghai-based asset management firms, search results from iFinD, a financial information provider, show.
The seven private funds managed by one of the firms, Shanghai Lanling Asset Management Co. Ltd., had all been liquidated ahead of schedule, the website of Asset Management Association of China shows.
Contact reporter Zhang Yukun (yukunzhang@caixin.com)
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