36Kr Evening News | Elon Musk Reaches Settlement with Four Former Twitter Executives, Settlement Fee Approximately 900 Million Yuan; UK Regulator Confirms Google's "Strategic Market Status" in Search Services Sector
Large Companies:
UK Regulator Confirms Google's "Strategic Market Status" in Search Services
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued a statement on October 10, saying that according to the UK's new digital market competition regime, it has confirmed that Google holds a "strategic market status" in the field of search services. The UK CMA stated that confirming Google's "strategic market status" does not imply that the company has engaged in improper behavior, nor will it immediately impose any requirements. However, this move enables the CMA to consider appropriate and targeted intervention measures to ensure effective competition in general search services and to ensure that consumers and businesses relying on Google can be confident that they are being treated fairly. The CMA expects to launch consultations on potential intervention measures later this year. (Jiemian)
Executives of Haitian Ruisheng recently responded to the year-on-year decline in the company's gross margin in the first half of 2025 during the company's semi-annual earnings briefing. They pointed out that this was mainly due to the phased change in the business mix, specifically the increased proportion of customized service revenue. This is primarily because the company's newly expanded overseas content review business currently all adopts the customized service model. Additionally, central state-owned enterprise customers are actively implementing the "AI +" strategy, and related businesses are mainly customized services. Looking ahead, the company will continue to deeply understand the needs of its key customers, accelerate the intelligent upgrade of the annotation process and the construction of a standardized data product system, continuously improve project operation efficiency, and gradually optimize the gross margin structure. (Securities Times)
Xiaomi Group - W Receives Net Southbound Inflows of HK$933 million
Southbound funds recorded net outflows of HK$399 million. Among them, Xiaomi Group - W, Pop Mart, and ZTE ranked top three in terms of net inflows, receiving net inflows of HK$933 million, HK$670 million, and HK$491 million respectively. In terms of net outflows, SMIC, Alibaba - W, and Huahong Semiconductor were net sold for HK$2.709 billion, HK$1.81 billion, and HK$1.145 billion respectively. (Yicai)
The Malaysian government warned in a report on Friday that if the US cancels tariff exemptions for Malaysian semiconductor exports, it may damage Malaysia's competitiveness and put pressure on the supply chain network. In August this year, the Donald Trump administration imposed a 19% tariff on Malaysian products exported to the US, but some products, including semiconductors, currently still enjoy exemptions - this exemption status will remain in effect until the completion of a US national security investigation. (Sina Finance)
ZhiYuan Robotics plans to list in Hong Kong next year and has hired China International Capital Corporation, Citic Securities, and Morgan Stanley to handle its stock issuance. The target valuation is between US$5.1 billion and US$6.4 billion. (Sina Finance)
SoftBank in Talks for a US$5 billion Margin Loan Secured by Arm Shares
It is reported that SoftBank Group is in talks with multiple global banks to apply for a US$5 billion margin loan secured by shares of its chip subsidiary, Arm Holdings. The report cited sources familiar with the matter, adding that the funds will be used for additional investment in OpenAI this year. (Sina Finance)
Investment and Financing:
Recently, CATL (Shanghai) Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., a technology service provider for intelligent skateboard chassis products under CATL, completed its first external financing. The investors include well - known market - oriented institutions such as Boyu Capital and Guotai Junan, industrial capital such as BAIC Capital, and state - owned capital such as Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Group and Futeng Capital. The total financing amount in this round exceeded 2 billion yuan. The funds will be mainly used for the mass production of CATL's Panshi chassis models and the R & D of the next - generation Panshi chassis technology. After this financing, the valuation of CATL Times Intelligence exceeded 10 billion yuan, making it the first unicorn enterprise in the intelligent chassis field. (Cailian Press)
The Margin Balance in the Two Stock Exchanges Increases by 5.0709 billion yuan
36Kr learned that as of October 9, the margin balance of the Shanghai Stock Exchange was reported at 123.325 billion yuan, an increase of 2.4632 billion yuan from the previous trading day; the margin balance of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange was reported at 118.8431 billion yuan, an increase of 2.6077 billion yuan from the previous trading day; the total margin balance of the two exchanges was 242.1681 billion yuan, an increase of 5.0709 billion yuan from the previous trading day.
New Products:
Tai'enkang: CKBA is Not the Specific Research Result of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine Winner
36Kr learned that Tai'enkang stated on the interactive platform that CKBA is not the specific research result of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Medicine winner, but its core is related to the core fields of immunology, namely "immune tolerance" and "immune regulation". CKBA does not widely suppress the overall immune system and is more targeted compared with traditional immunosuppressants, providing a new strategy for restoring immune balance.
South Korean Biopharmaceutical Company Celltrion's Ophthalmic Biosimilar Approved in the US
On October 10, South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion issued a statement saying that its biosimilar Eydenzelt (referencing Eylea) has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of wet age - related macular degeneration and other eye diseases. The company added that both the Eydenzelt injection and the Eydenzelt pre - filled syringe (PFS) formulation have been approved. (Jiemian)
Today's Views:
Fed's Daly: Labor Market Weakness and Slowing Inflation Justify Fed Rate Cuts
Fed's Daly said that the weakness in the labor market and inflation levels being "well below" previous concerns justify the US rate cut last month and prompt the Fed to hint at possible further rate cuts in the future. Daly said at an event of the Silicon Valley Directors' Exchange: "The economy is slowing slightly. Consumers are depleting all their excess savings they may have, and they have been dealing with higher price levels. In addition, we have a restrictive monetary policy." She concluded: "We are at a critical point now. If we don't conduct risk management, the weakness in the labor market may look more worrying." (Xinhua Finance)
The UK's mainstream trading platform issued a stern warning to investors hoping to profit from the new cryptocurrency regulations: cryptocurrencies should not be included in investment portfolios. A long - standing UK rule that prohibited retail investors from participating in cryptocurrency exchange - traded notes (ETNs) was lifted on October 8. Exchange - traded notes (ETNs) are debt instruments linked to one or more specific assets. In the cryptocurrency field, investors can access digital tokens through regulated exchanges with the help of such notes. (Sina Finance)
Elon Musk Reaches Settlement with 4 Former Twitter Executives for About 900 million yuan
American entrepreneur Elon Musk and his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, reached a settlement with four former executives of the company in a severance pay lawsuit. The total claim amount was up to US$128 million (approximately 900 million yuan). The specific terms of the settlement agreement have not been disclosed. The lawsuit stemmed from 2022 when Musk completed the acquisition of Twitter, immediately laid off more than half of the employees, and renamed Twitter to X. The plaintiffs claimed that Musk wrongly accused them of improper behavior and forced them to leave after they sued him for attempting to breach the acquisition agreement of Twitter. After that, they did not receive the promised severance pay. (CCTV Finance)
Other Noteworthy News:
The US Reaches a Currency Swap Framework Agreement with Argentina
The US government bought Argentine pesos on October 9 and reached a US$20 billion currency swap framework agreement with the Central Bank of Argentina. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on his social media on the same day, "Argentina is facing a severe liquidity shortage. The international community, including the International Monetary Fund, unanimously supports Argentina and its prudent fiscal strategy... Therefore, we directly bought Argentine pesos today." "In addition, we have finalized a US$20 billion currency swap framework agreement with the Central Bank of Argentina. The US Treasury is ready to immediately take all necessary special measures to maintain market stability (in Argentina)." (Xinhua Finance)
Global Financial Regulators Plan to Strengthen Monitoring of Artificial Intelligence
As banks and other areas of the financial industry accelerate the application of artificial intelligence, global financial regulators have formulated plans to strengthen the monitoring of related risks. Concerns raised by regulators include: too many financial institutions may ultimately use the same artificial intelligence models and dedicated hardware, which may lead to "herd behavior" - like convergent actions. (Sina Finance)
The CSRC Seriously Punishes *ST Yuancheng for Serious Financial Fraud
36Kr learned that the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) announced that recently, it has issued a prior notice of administrative penalty regarding the suspected false records in the periodic reports and other financial data of Yuancheng Environment Co., Ltd. (referred to as *ST Yuancheng), a listed company on the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange. After investigation, *ST Yuancheng inflated its revenue and profits for three consecutive years, violating securities laws and regulations. The CSRC plans to fine the listed company 37.4546 million yuan, fine five responsible persons a total of 42 million yuan, and ban the actual controller from the securities market for 10 years. *ST Yuancheng is suspected of triggering the major illegal compulsory delisting situation, and the Shanghai Stock Exchange will initiate the delisting process in accordance with the law.