China Finance Online Co. Ltd. Receives Notice of Delisting from Nasdaq

Rhea-AI Summary

On January 20, 2022, China Finance Online Co. Limited (JRJC) announced it received a notice from the Nasdaq Hearings Panel regarding its impending delisting from Nasdaq, effective January 21, 2022. This follows a previous notification in May 2021 about non-compliance with the shareholders' equity requirement, leading to an initial delisting notice in August 2021. Despite a granted extension, the Company could not meet the $2.5 million stockholders' equity requirement by the deadline.

Positive

• None.

Negative

• Impending delisting from Nasdaq effective January 21, 2022.
• Failure to meet the minimum $2.5 million stockholders' equity requirement.
• Prior notifications of non-compliance dating back to May 2021.

BEIJING, Jan. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- China Finance Online Co. Limited ("China Finance Online", or the "Company", "we", "us" or "our") (NASDAQ: JRJC), a leading web-based financial services company that provides Chinese individual investors with fintech-powered online access to securities trading services, wealth management products, securities investment advisory services, as well as financial database and analytics services to institutional customers, today announced that it received a letter, dated January 19, 2022, from the Nasdaq Hearings Panel (the "Panel") informing the Company that it has determined to delist the Company's ADSs from Nasdaq by filing a Form 25 (Notification of Delisting) with the Securities and Exchange Commission after applicable appeal periods have lapsed and will suspend trading in our ADSs effective at the open of business on January 21, 2022.

As previously announced, the Company was notified in May 2021 that it was not in compliance with the shareholders' equity requirement of Listing Rule 5450(b)(1)(A) and received a delisting notice in August 2021. Following the hearing that took place in September 2021, the Panel granted the Company's request to phase down to The Nasdaq Capital Market and an extension until January 14, 2022 to evidence compliance with the minimum $2.5 million stockholders' equity requirement, or the alternative compliance standards as set forth in Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(b)(1).

About China Finance Online

China Finance Online Co. Limited is a leading web-based financial services company that provides Chinese individual investors with fintech-powered online access to securities trading services, wealth management products, securities investment advisory services, as well as financial database and analytics services to institutional customers.  The Company's prominent flagship portal site, www.jrj.com, is ranked among the top financial websites in China.  In addition to the web-based securities trading platform, the Company offers basic financial software, information services and securities investment advisory services to retail investors in China.  Through its subsidiary, Shenzhen Genius Information Technology Co. Ltd., the Company provides financial database and analytics to institutional customers including domestic financial, research, academic and regulatory institutions.  China Finance Online also provides brokerage services in Hong Kong.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements which constitute "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  The statements contained herein reflect management's current views with respect to future events and financial performance.  These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of the Company.  These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements.  Among other things, this release contains the following forward-looking statements regarding:

• liquidity and sources of funding, including our ability to continue operating as a going concern;
• our prospect and our ability to attract new users;
• our prospect on building a comprehensive wealth management ecosystem through providing a fully-integrated online communication and securities-trading platform;
• our prospect on stabilization in cash attrition and improvement of our financial position;
• our initiatives to address customers' demand for intuitive online investment platforms and alternative investment opportunities; and
• the market prospect of the business of securities-trading, securities investment advisory and wealth management.

Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, which risk factors and uncertainties include, amongst others, substantial doubt about ability to continue as a going concern, the outbreak of COVID-19 or other health epidemics in China or globally, changing customer needs, regulatory environment and market conditions that we are subject to; the uneven condition of the world and Chinese economies that could lead to volatility in the equity markets and affect our operating results in the coming quarters; the impact of the changing conditions of the mainland Chinese stock market, Hong Kong stock market and global financial markets on our future performance; the unpredictability of our strategic transformation and growth of new businesses; the prospect of our margin-related business and the degree to which our implementation of margin account screening and ongoing monitoring will yield successful outcomes; the degree to which our strategic collaborations with partners will yield successful outcomes; the prospects for China's high-net-worth and middle-class households; the prospects of equipping our customer specialists with new technology, tools and financial knowledge; wavering investor confidence that could impact our business; and possible non-cash goodwill, intangible assets and investment impairments may adversely affect our net income.  Furthermore, we have recurring losses from operation and inability to generate sufficient cash flow to meet our obligation and sustain our operations and face uncertainty as to the operation impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern and continue as a listed company on Nasdaq. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F under "Forward-Looking Information" and "Risk Factors".  The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.

For more information, please contact:

China Finance Online
+86-10-8336-3100
ir@jrj.com

Kevin Theiss
Awaken Advisors
(212) 521-4050
kevin@awakenlab.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/china-finance-online-co-ltd-receives-notice-of-delisting-from-nasdaq-301464954.html

SOURCE China Finance Online Co., Ltd.

FAQ

What happened to China Finance Online (JRJC) on January 20, 2022?

On January 20, 2022, JRJC announced it would be delisted from Nasdaq effective January 21, 2022, due to non-compliance with shareholder equity requirements.

What was the reason for JRJC's delisting notice?

JRJC received a delisting notice due to its failure to meet the $2.5 million stockholders' equity requirement set by Nasdaq.

When did JRJC receive the initial delisting notice?

The initial delisting notice was received by JRJC in August 2021.

What equity requirement did JRJC fail to meet?

JRJC failed to meet the minimum $2.5 million stockholders' equity requirement.