US market watchdog steps up pressure on foreign firms

ANKARA

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) increased pressure on foreign companies to disclose more information for audits.

"If you want to issue public securities in the US, the firms that audit your books have to be subject to inspection," SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a statement on Thursday.

The decision also requires foreign companies not to be owned or controlled by a governmental entity, it added.

The market watchdog's new procedures also allow it to impose trading prohibitions that would include Chinese firms.

Gensler in September warned that Chinese firms might be kicked out of American stock exchanges in 2024 unless they comply with the SEC regulations.