RISK FACTORS

An investment in our ordinary shares involves significant risks. You should carefully consider all of the information in this prospectus, including the risks and uncertainties described below, before making an investment in our ordinary shares. Any of the following risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In any such case, the market price of our ordinary shares could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Related to Our Business

We have a limited operating history in an evolving market, which makes it difficult to evaluate our future prospects.

We launched our company in 2018 and have a limited operating history. As our business develops, or in response to competition, we may continue to introduce new services or make adjustments to our existing services, or make adjustments to our business model. In connection with the introduction of new services, or in response to general economic conditions, we may impose more stringent customer qualifications to ensure the quality of our customers, which may negatively affect the growth of our business. Any significant change to our business model may not achieve expected results and may have a material and adverse impact on our financial conditions and results of operations. It is therefore difficult to effectively assess our future prospects.

If we fail to educate potential clients about the value of our services, if the market for our marketplace does not develop as we expect, or if we fail to address the needs of our target market, our business and results of operations will be harmed.

Our historical financial results may not be indicative of our future performance.

Our business has achieved rapid growth since our inception. Our net revenue increased from $ nil for the period from March 2018 (when we commenced our operations) to $5.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2018 and $7.9 million for the six months ended June 30, 2019. However, our historical growth rate and the limited history of our operations make it difficult to evaluate our prospects. We may not be able to sustain our historically rapid growth or may not be able to grow our business at all.

The global economy and the financial markets may negatively affect our business and clients, as well as the supply of and demand for works of art. 

Our business is affected by global, national and local economic conditions since the services we provide are discretionary and we depend, to a significant extent, upon a number of factors relating to discretionary consumer spending in China and Hong Kong. These factors include economic conditions and perceptions of such conditions by traders of collectibles and artwork, employment rates, the level of their disposable income, business conditions, interest rates, availability of credit and levels of taxation in regional and local markets. There can be no assurance that our services will not be adversely affected by changes in general economic conditions in China, Hong Kong and globally.

The art market is influenced over time by the overall strength and stability of the global economy and the financial markets, although this correlation may not be immediately evident. In addition, political conditions and world events may affect our business through their effect on the economy, as well as on the willingness of potential buyers and sellers to invest and sell art in the wake of economic uncertainty.

Changes in international trade policies, trade dispute or the emergence of a trade war, may have an adverse effect on our business.

Political events, international trade disputes, and other business interruptions could harm or disrupt international commerce and the global economy, and could have a material adverse effect on the Company and its customers, logistics providers, network carriers and other channel partners.

International trade disputes could result in tariffs and other protectionist measures that could adversely affect the Company’s business. Tariffs could increase the cost of the goods and products which could affect people’s discretionary spending level and adversely impact our business. Also, political uncertainty surrounding international trade disputes and the potential of the escalation to trade war and global recession could have a negative effect on consumer confidence, which could adversely affect the Company’s business.

If we become subject to additional scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity involving U.S.-listed China-based companies, we may have to expend significant resources to investigate and resolve the matter which could harm our business operations, this offering and our reputation and could result in a loss of your investment in our ordinary shares, especially if such matter cannot be addressed and resolved favorably.

Recently, U.S. public companies that have substantially all of their operations in China have been the subject of intense scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity by investors, financial commentators and regulatory agencies. Much of the scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity has centered around financial and accounting irregularities, a lack of effective internal controls over financial accounting, inadequate corporate governance policies or a lack of adherence thereto and, in some cases, allegations of fraud. As a result of the scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity, the publicly traded stock of many U.S.-listed China-based companies has decreased in value and, in some cases, has become virtually worthless. Many of these companies have been subject to shareholder lawsuits and SEC enforcement actions and have conducted internal and external investigations into the allegations. It is not clear what effect this sector-wide scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity will have on us, our business and this offering. If we become the subject of any unfavorable allegations, whether such allegations are proven to be true or untrue, we will have to expend significant resources to investigate such allegations and/or defend our company. This situation may be a major distraction to our management. If such allegations are not proven to be groundless, our business operations will be severely hindered and your investment in our ordinary shares could be rendered worthless.

The demand for art and collectibles are unpredictable, which may cause significant variability in our results of operations.

The demand for art is influenced not only by overall economic conditions, but also by changing trends in the art market as to which collecting categories and artists are most sought after and by the preferences of individual collectors. These conditions and trends are difficult to predict and may adversely impact our ability to obtain and sell consigned property, potentially causing significant variability in our results of operations from period to period.

A decline in trading volumes will decrease our trading revenues.

Trading volumes are directly affected by economic, political and market conditions, broad trends in business and finance, unforeseen market closures or other disruptions in trading, the level and volatility of interest rates, inflation, changes in price of collectibles and artwork and the overall level of investor confidence. In recent years, trading volumes across our markets have fluctuated depending on market conditions and other factors beyond our control. Because a significant percentage of our revenues are tied directly to the trading volumes on our markets, it is likely that a general decline in trading volumes would lower revenues and may adversely affect our operating results. Declines in trading volumes may also impact our market share or pricing structures and adversely affect our business and financial condition.

Due to the nature of our business, valuable works of art are stored at our facilities. Such works of art could be subject to damage or theft, which could have a material adverse effect on our operations, reputation and brand.

Valuable works of art are stored at our facilities. Although we maintain security measures at our premises, valuable collectibles and artwork may be subject to damage or theft. The damage or theft of valuable property despite these security measures could have a material adverse impact on our business and reputation.

System limitations or failures could harm our business.

Our businesses depend on the integrity and performance of the technology, computer and communications systems supporting them. If our systems cannot expand to cope with increased demand or otherwise fail to perform, we could experience unanticipated disruptions in service, slower response times and delays in the introduction of new services. These consequences could result in financial losses and decreased customer service and satisfaction. If trading volumes increase unexpectedly or other unanticipated events occur, we may need to expand and upgrade our technology, transaction processing systems and network infrastructure. We do not know whether we will be able to accurately project the rate, timing or cost of any increases, or expand and upgrade our systems and infrastructure to accommodate any increases in a timely manner.

The success of our business depends on our ability to market and advertise the services we provide effectively.

Our ability to establish effective marketing campaigns is the key to our success. Our advertisements promote our corporate image and our services. If we are unable to increase awareness of our brand, the benefits of using our trading platform to invest in collectibles and artwork, and that such investment is secure, we may not be able to attract new traders. Our marketing activities may not be successful in promoting our services or in retaining and increasing our trader base. We cannot assure you that our marketing programs will be adequate to support our future growth, which may result in a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

If we do not compete effectively, our results of operations could be harmed.

The art e-commerce industry is highly fragmented and competitive with relatively low entry barriers. We compete primarily on the basis of our technology, comprehensive customer service and brand recognition. Our competitors may compete with us in the following ways:

Although we do not compete against other trading service providers solely based on prices, if our competitors offer their services at lower prices, we may be forced to provide aggressive discounts or rebates to our customers and our commission and fees may decrease. Reduction in commissions and fees without a commensurate reduction in expenses would lower our profitability.

In addition, there are over 10 art e-commerce platforms operating in Hong Kong, through which individual customers can open accounts and trade all kinds of artworks on those exchanges. Recently, certain Internet companies also launched art e-commerce trading services.

Some of these competitors may have greater financial resources or a larger customer base than we do, and if we fail to compete effectively, our market position, business prospects and results of operations would be adversely affected.

The art e-commerce market is highly competitive and many traditional art galleries and auction houses may provide a platform for artwork owners to sell their collections. However their trading model is substantially different from ours. As of June 30, 2019, there were over 60 active art e-commerce platforms operating nationwide in China. The trading service providers compete with each other for customers and trading volume based on factors including brand, technology, research and customer services.

Although some of our competitors may have greater financial resources or larger customer bases than we do, we believe that our proprietary technology platform, our comprehensive customer services and strong brand recognition in the industry, will enable us to compete effectively in the fast evolving art e-commerce trading industry in the PRC.

Our competitors operate with different business models, have different cost structures or participate selectively in different market segments. They may ultimately prove more successful or more adaptable to new regulatory, technological and other developments. Many of our current and potential competitors have significantly more financial, technical, marketing and other resources than we do and may be able to devote greater resources to the development, promotion, sale and support of their service offerings. Our competitors may also have longer operating histories, a more extensive client base, greater brand recognition and brand loyalty and broader partner relationships than us. Additionally, a current or potential competitor may acquire one or more of our existing competitors or form a strategic alliance with one or more of our competitors. Our competitors may be better at developing new products, offering more attractive terms or lower fees, responding faster to new technologies and undertaking more extensive and effective marketing campaigns. In response to competition and in order to grow or maintain the volume of our business, we may have to charge lower fees, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. If we are unable to compete with such companies and meet the need for innovation in our industry, the demand for our services and products could stagnate or substantially decline, we could experience reduced revenues or our marketplace could fail to achieve or maintain more widespread market acceptance, any of which could harm our business and results of operations.

Our quarterly results may fluctuate significantly and may not fully reflect the underlying performance of our business.

Our quarterly results of operations, including the levels of our net revenues, expenses, net (loss)/income and other key metrics, may vary significantly in the future due to a variety of factors, some of which are outside of our control, and period-to-period comparisons of our operating results may not be meaningful, especially given our limited operating history. Accordingly, the results for any one quarter are not necessarily an indication of future performance. Fluctuations in quarterly results may adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares. Factors that may cause fluctuations in our quarterly financial results include:

Despite our marketing efforts, we may not be able to promote and maintain our brand in an effective and cost-efficient way and our business and results of operations may be harmed accordingly.

We believe that effectively developing and maintaining awareness of our brand is critical to attracting new and retaining existing clients. Successful promotion of our brand and our ability to attract quality clients depends largely on the effectiveness of our marketing efforts and the success of the channels we use to promote our services.  Our efforts to build our brand have caused us to incur marketing and advertising expenses in the amount of approximately $1.6 million in 2018. It is likely that our future marketing efforts will require us to incur significant additional expenses as we expand our business. These efforts may not result in increased revenues in the immediate future or at all and, even if they do, any increases in revenues may not offset the expenses incurred. If we fail to successfully promote and maintain our brand while incurring substantial expenses, our results of operations and financial condition would be adversely affected, which may impair our ability to grow our business.

Fraudulent activity in our marketplace could negatively impact our operating results, brand and reputation and cause the use of our services to decrease.

We are subject to the risk of fraudulent activity both in our marketplace and associated with traders and third parties handling their information. Our resources, technologies and fraud detection tools may be insufficient to accurately detect and prevent fraud. Increases in fraudulent activity, either in our marketplace or associated with participants of our marketplace, could negatively impact our brand and reputation, reduce the volume of transactions facilitated through our platform and lead us to take additional steps to reduce fraud risk, which could increase our costs. High profile fraudulent activity could even lead to regulatory intervention, and may divert our management’s attention and cause us to incur additional expenses and costs. Although we have not experienced any material business or reputational harm as a result of fraudulent activities in the past, we cannot rule out the possibility that any of the foregoing may occur, causing harm to our business or reputation in the future. If any of the foregoing were to occur, our results of operations and financial conditions could be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to prevent others from unauthorized use of our intellectual property, which could harm our business and competitive position.

We regard our trademarks, domain names, know-how, proprietary technologies and similar intellectual property as critical to our success, and we rely on a combination of intellectual property laws and contractual arrangements, including confidentiality and non-compete agreements with our employees and others, to protect our proprietary rights. See “Business—Intellectual Property” and “Regulation—Regulation on Intellectual Property Rights.” We cannot assure you that any of our intellectual property rights will not be challenged, invalidated, circumvented or misappropriated, or such intellectual property will be sufficient to provide us with competitive advantages. In addition, because of the rapid pace of technological change, parts of our business rely on technologies developed or licensed by third parties, and we may not be able to obtain or continue to obtain licenses and technologies from these third parties on reasonable terms, or at all.

It is often difficult to register, maintain and enforce intellectual property rights in China. Statutory laws and regulations are subject to judicial interpretation and enforcement and may not be applied consistently due to the lack of clear guidance on statutory interpretation. Confidentiality, invention assignment and non-compete agreements may be breached by counterparties, and there may not be adequate remedies available to us for any such breach. Accordingly, we may not be able to effectively protect our intellectual property rights or to enforce our contractual rights in China. Preventing any unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult and costly and the steps we take may be inadequate to prevent the misappropriation of our intellectual property. In the event that we resort to litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights, such litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our managerial and financial resources. We can provide no assurance that we will prevail in such litigation. In addition, our trade secrets may be leaked or otherwise become available to, or be independently discovered by, our competitors. To the extent that our employees or consultants use intellectual property owned by others in their work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in related know-how and inventions. Any failure in protecting or enforcing our intellectual property rights could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our annual effective income tax rate can change significantly as a result of a combination of changes in our foreign earnings and other factors, including changes in tax laws or changes made by regulatory authorities.

Our consolidated effective income tax rate is equal to our total income tax expense (benefit) as a percentage of total book income (loss) before tax. Losses in one jurisdiction may not be used to offset profits in other jurisdictions and may cause an increase in our tax rate. Changes in statutory income tax rates and laws, as well as initiation of tax audits by local and foreign authorities, could impact the amount of income tax liability and income taxes we are required to pay. In addition, any fluctuation in the earnings (or losses) of the jurisdictions and assumptions used in the calculation of income taxes could have a significant effect on our consolidated effective income tax rate. Furthermore, our effective tax rate could increase if we are unable to generate sufficient future taxable income in certain jurisdictions, or if we are otherwise required to increase our valuation allowances against our deferred tax assets. 

We are subject to taxation in multiple jurisdictions. As a result, any adverse development in the tax laws of any of these jurisdictions or any disagreement with our tax positions could have a material adverse effect on our business, consolidated financial condition or results of operations.

We are subject to taxation in, and to the tax laws and regulations of, multiple jurisdictions, particularly in the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong. In addition, tax authorities in any applicable jurisdiction, may disagree with the positions we have taken or intend to take regarding the tax treatment or characterization of any of our transactions. In the event any applicable tax authorities effectively sustained their positions which are different from our tax treatment of any of our transactions, it could have a significant adverse impact on our business, consolidated results of our operations as well as consolidated financial condition.

We may be subject to intellectual property infringement claims, which may be expensive to defend and may disrupt our business and operations.

We cannot be certain that our operations or any aspects of our business do not or will not infringe upon or otherwise violate trademarks, patents, copyrights, know-how or other intellectual property rights held by third parties. We may be from time to time in the future subject to legal proceedings and claims relating to the intellectual property rights of others. In addition, there may be third-party trademarks, patents, copyrights, know-how or other intellectual property rights that are infringed by our products, services or other aspects of our business without our awareness. Holders of such intellectual property rights may seek to enforce such intellectual property rights against us in China, the United States or other jurisdictions. If any third-party infringement claims are brought against us, we may be forced to divert management’s time and other resources from our business and operations to defend against these claims, regardless of their merits.

Additionally, the application and interpretation of China’s intellectual property laws and the procedures and standards for granting trademarks, patents, copyrights, know-how or other intellectual property rights in China are still evolving and are uncertain, and we cannot assure you that PRC courts or regulatory authorities would agree with our analysis. If we were found to have violated the intellectual property rights of others, we may be subject to liability for our infringement activities or may be prohibited from using such intellectual property, and we may incur licensing fees or be forced to develop alternatives of our own. As a result, our business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

From time to time we may evaluate and potentially consummate strategic investments or acquisitions, which could require significant management attention, disrupt our business and adversely affect our financial results.

We may evaluate and consider strategic investments, combinations, acquisitions or alliances to further increase the value of our marketplace and better serve our clients. These transactions could be material to our financial condition and results of operations if consummated. If we are able to identify an appropriate business opportunity, we may not be able to successfully consummate the transaction and, even if we do consummate such a transaction, we may be unable to obtain the benefits or avoid the difficulties and risks of such transaction.

Strategic investments or acquisitions will involve risks commonly encountered in business relationships, including:

We may not make any investments or acquisitions, or any future investments or acquisitions may not be successful, may not benefit our business strategy, may not generate sufficient revenues to offset the associated acquisition costs or may not otherwise result in the intended benefits. In addition, we cannot assure you that any future investment in or acquisition of new businesses or technology will lead to the successful development of new or enhanced products and services or that any new or enhanced products and services, if developed, will achieve market acceptance or prove to be profitable.

Our business depends on the continued efforts of our senior management. If one or more of our key executives were unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions, our business may be severely disrupted.

Our business operations depend on the continued services of our senior management, particularly the executive officers named in this prospectus. While we have the ability to provide different incentives to our management, we cannot assure you that we can continue to retain their services. If one or more of our key executives were unable or unwilling to continue in their present positions, we may not be able to replace them easily or at all, our future growth may be constrained, our business may be severely disrupted and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected, and we may incur additional expenses to recruit, train and retain qualified personnel. In addition, although we have entered into confidentiality and non-competition agreements with our management, there is no assurance that any member of our management team will not join our competitors or form a competing business. If any dispute arises between our current or former officers and us, we may have to incur substantial costs and expenses in order to enforce such agreements in China or we may be unable to enforce them at all.

We have engaged in transactions with related parties, and such transactions present possible conflicts of interest that could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

We have entered into a number of transactions with related parties, including our shareholders, directors and executive officers. For example, we have entered into several transactions with Nanjing Culture and Artwork Property Exchange Co., Ltd. and Jinling Cultural Property Rights Exchange Co., Ltd., which are controlled or owned by Mr. Huajun Gao, a 16.13% shareholder of the Company before the offering, including providing technology services to these two companies and leasing an office space from Nanjing Culture and Artwork property Exchange Co., Ltd. For the six months ended June 30, 2019, our related party accounts receivable, accounts payable, other payables, revenues, cost of revenues and selling and marketing expenses accounted for 21.3%, 95.4%, 6.9%, 1.0%, 54% and 49.3% of our total accounts receivable, accounts payable, other payables, revenues, cost of revenues and selling and marketing expenses, respectively. See “Related Party Transactions.”  We may in the future enter into additional transactions with entities in which members of our board of directors and other related parties hold ownership interests.

Transactions with the entities in which related parties hold ownership interests present potential for conflicts of interest, as the interests of these entities and their shareholders may not align with the interests of the Company and our shareholders with respect to the negotiation of, and certain other matters related to, our lease and technology services to such entities. Conflicts of interest may also arise in connection with the exercise of contractual remedies under these transactions, such as the treatment of events of default.

Currently, our Board of Directors has authorized the Audit Committee to review and approve all the related party transaction. We rely on the laws of Cayman Islands, which provide that directors owe a duty of care and a duty of loyalty to our company. Nevertheless, we may have achieved more favorable terms if such transactions had not been entered into with related parties and these transactions, individually or in the aggregate, may have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations or may result in government enforcement actions or other litigation.

The relative lack of public company experience of our management team may put us at a competitive disadvantage.

Our management team lacks public company experience, which could impair our ability to comply with legal and regulatory requirements such as those imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, (“Sarbanes-Oxley”). Our senior management does not have much experience managing a publicly-traded company. Such responsibilities include complying with federal securities laws and making required disclosures on a timely basis. Our senior management may be unable to implement programs and policies in an effective and timely manner or that adequately respond to the increased legal, regulatory and reporting requirements associated with being a publicly traded company. Our failure to comply with all applicable requirements could lead to the imposition of fines and penalties, distract our management from attending to the management and growth of our business, result in a loss of investor confidence in our financial reports and have an adverse effect on our business and stock price.

Competition for employees is intense, and we may not be able to attract and retain the qualified and skilled employees needed to support our business.

We believe our success depends on the efforts and talent of our employees, including risk management, information technology, financial and marketing personnel. Our future success depends on our continued ability to attract, develop, motivate and retain qualified and skilled employees. Competition for highly skilled marketing, real estate, technical, risk management and financial personnel is extremely intense. We may not be able to hire and retain these personnel at compensation levels consistent with our existing compensation and salary structure. Some of the companies with which we compete for experienced employees have greater resources than we have and may be able to offer more attractive terms of employment.

In addition, we invest significant time and expense in training our employees, which increases their value to competitors who may seek to recruit them. If we fail to retain our employees, we could incur significant expense in hiring and training their replacements, and the quality of our products and services could diminish, resulting in a material adverse effect to our business.

Increases in labor costs in the PRC may adversely affect our business and results of operations.

The economy in China has experienced increases in inflation and labor costs in recent years. As a result, average wages in the PRC are expected to continue to increase. In addition, we are required by PRC laws and regulations to pay various statutory employee benefits, including pension, housing funds, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance to designated government agencies for the benefit of our employees. The relevant government agencies may examine whether an employer has made adequate payments to the statutory employee benefits, and those employers who fail to make adequate payments may be subject to late payment fees, fines and/or other penalties. We expect that our labor costs, including wages and employee benefits, will continue to increase. Unless we are able to control our labor costs or pass on these increased labor costs to our users by increasing the fees of our services, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

If we cannot maintain our corporate culture as we grow, we could lose the innovation, collaboration and focus that contribute to our business.

We believe that a critical component of our success is our corporate culture, which we believe fosters innovation, encourages teamwork and cultivates creativity. As we develop the infrastructure of a public company and continue to grow, we may find it difficult to maintain these valuable aspects of our corporate culture. Any failure to preserve our culture could negatively impact our future success, including our ability to attract and retain employees, encourage innovation and teamwork and effectively focus on and pursue our corporate objectives.

We do not have any business insurance coverage.

Insurance companies in China currently do not offer as extensive an array of insurance products as insurance companies in more developed economies. Currently, we do not have any business liability or disruption insurance to cover our operations. We have determined that the costs of insuring for these risks and the difficulties associated with acquiring such insurance on commercially reasonable terms make it impractical for us to have such insurance. Any uninsured business disruptions may result in our incurring substantial costs and the diversion of resources, which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

If the PRC government deems that the contractual arrangements in relation to our consolidated variable interest entities do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations.

We are a Cayman Islands exempted company and our PRC subsidiary is considered a foreign invested enterprise. To comply with PRC laws and regulations, we conduct our operations in China through a series of contractual arrangements entered into among the WFOE, our VIEs and the shareholders of our VIEs. As a result of these contractual arrangements, we exert control over our VIEs and consolidate their operating results in our financial statements under U.S. GAAP. For a detailed description of these contractual arrangements, see “Corporate History and Structure.”

In the opinion of our PRC counsel, Allbright Law Offices, our current ownership structure, the ownership structure of our PRC subsidiary and our consolidated VIEs, and the contractual arrangements among the WFOE, our VIEs and the shareholders of our VIEs are not in violation of existing PRC laws, rules and regulations; and these contractual arrangements are valid, binding and enforceable in accordance with their terms and applicable PRC laws and regulations currently in effect. However, Allbright Law Offices has also advised us that there are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current or future PRC laws and regulations and there can be no assurance that the PRC government will ultimately take a view that is consistent with the opinion of our PRC counsel.

If the PRC government finds that our contractual arrangements do not comply with its restrictions on foreign investment in the market survey service business, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities, including the CSRC, would have broad discretion in dealing with such violations or failures, including, without limitation:

The imposition of any of these penalties would result in a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business. In addition, it is unclear what impact the PRC government actions would have on us and on our ability to consolidate the financial results of our VIEs in our consolidated financial statements, if the PRC government authorities were to find our VIE structure and contractual arrangements to be in violation of PRC laws and regulations. If the imposition of any of these government actions causes us to lose our right to direct the activities of our VIEs or our right to receive substantially all the economic benefits and residual returns from our VIEs and we are not able to restructure our ownership structure and operations in a satisfactory manner, we would no longer be able to consolidate the financial results of our VIEs in our consolidated financial statements. Either of these results, or any other significant penalties that might be imposed on us in this event, would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on contractual arrangements with our VIEs and the shareholders of our VIEs for our business operations, which may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing operational control.

We have relied and expect to continue to rely on contractual arrangements with Jiangsu Yanggu and Jiangsu Yanggu’s shareholders to operate our business. For a description of these contractual arrangements, see “Corporate History and Structure.” These contractual arrangements may not be as effective as direct ownership in providing us with control over our consolidated variable interest entities. For example, our consolidated variable interest entities and their shareholders could breach their contractual arrangements with us by, among other things, failing to conduct their operations, including maintaining our website and using the domain names and trademarks, in an acceptable manner, or taking other actions that are detrimental to our interests.

If we had direct ownership of our VIEs, we would be able to exercise our rights as a shareholder to effect changes in the board of directors of our VIEs, which in turn could implement changes, subject to any applicable fiduciary obligations, at the management and operational levels. However, under the current contractual arrangements, we rely on the performance by our consolidated variable interest entities and their shareholders of their obligations under the contracts to exercise control over our consolidated variable interest entities. The shareholders of our consolidated variable interest entities may not act in the best interests of our company or may not perform their obligations under these contracts. Such risks exist throughout the period in which we intend to operate our business through the contractual arrangements with our consolidated variable interest entities. Although we have the right to replace any shareholder of our consolidated variable interest entities under the contractual arrangement, if any shareholder of our consolidated variable interest entities is uncooperative or any dispute relating to these contracts remains unresolved, we will have to enforce our rights under these contracts through the operations of PRC laws and arbitration, litigation and other legal proceedings and therefore will be subject to uncertainties in the PRC legal system. See “—Any failure by our consolidated variable interest entities or its shareholders to perform their obligations under our contractual arrangements with them would have a material adverse effect on our business.” Therefore, our contractual arrangements with our consolidated variable interest entities may not be as effective in ensuring our control over the relevant portion of our business operations as direct ownership would be.

Any failure by our consolidated VIEs or their shareholders to perform their obligations under our contractual arrangements with them would have a material adverse effect on our business.

If our consolidated VIEs or their shareholders fail to perform their respective obligations under the contractual arrangements, we may have to incur substantial costs and expend additional resources to enforce such arrangements. We may also have to rely on legal remedies under PRC laws, including seeking specific performance or injunctive relief, and claiming damages, which we cannot assure you will be effective under PRC laws. For example, if the shareholders of our VIEs were to refuse to transfer their equity interest in the VIEs to us or our designee if we exercise the purchase option pursuant to these contractual arrangements, or if they were otherwise to act in bad faith toward us, then we may have to take legal action to compel them to perform their contractual obligations.

All the agreements under our contractual arrangements are governed by PRC laws and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in China. Accordingly, these contracts would be interpreted in accordance with PRC laws and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. The legal system in the PRC is not as developed as in some other jurisdictions, such as the United States. As a result, uncertainties in the PRC legal system could limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements. Meanwhile, there are very few precedents and little formal guidance as to how contractual arrangements in the context of a consolidated variable interest entity should be interpreted or enforced under PRC laws. There remain significant uncertainties regarding the ultimate outcome of such arbitration should legal action become necessary. In addition, under PRC laws, rulings by arbitrators are final and parties cannot appeal arbitration results in court unless such rulings are revoked or determined unenforceable by a competent court. If the losing parties fail to carry out the arbitration awards within a prescribed time limit, the prevailing parties may only enforce the arbitration awards in PRC courts through arbitration award recognition proceedings, which would require additional expenses and delay. In the event that we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, or if we suffer significant delay or other obstacles in the process of enforcing these contractual arrangements, we may not be able to exert effective control over our consolidated variable interest entities, and our ability to conduct our business may be negatively affected. See “—Risks Related to Doing Business in China—Uncertainties in the interpretation and enforcement of Chinese laws and regulations could limit the legal protections available to you and us.”

The shareholders of our consolidated VIEs may have potential conflicts of interest with us, which may materially and adversely affect our business and financial condition.

Forty percent of the equity interests of Jiangsu Yanggu are held by Kong Aimin and Gao Huajun. Their interests in Jiangsu Yanggu may differ from the interests of our company as a whole. These shareholders may breach, or cause our consolidated variable interest entities to breach, the existing contractual arrangements we have with them and our consolidated variable interest entities, which would have a material adverse effect on our ability to effectively control our consolidated variable interest entities and receive economic benefits from them. For example, the shareholders may be able to cause our agreements with Jiangsu Yanggu to be performed in a manner adverse to us by, among other things, failing to remit payments due under the contractual arrangements to us on a timely basis. We cannot assure you that when conflicts of interest arise, any or all of these shareholders will act in the best interests of our company or such conflicts will be resolved in our favor.

Currently, we do not have any arrangements to address potential conflicts of interest between these shareholders and our company, except that we could exercise our purchase option under the exclusive option agreements with these shareholders to request them to transfer all of their equity interests in Jiangsu Yanggu to a PRC entity or individual designated by us, to the extent permitted by PRC laws. If we cannot resolve any conflict of interest or dispute between us and the major shareholders of Jiangsu Yanggu, we would have to rely on legal proceedings, which could result in the disruption of our business and subject us to substantial uncertainty as to the outcome of any such legal proceedings.

Contractual arrangements in relation to our consolidated variable interest entities may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and they may determine that we or our PRC consolidated variable interest entities owe additional taxes, which could negatively affect our financial condition and the value of your investment.

Under applicable PRC laws and regulations, arrangements and transactions among related parties may be subject to audit or challenge by the PRC tax authorities within ten years after the taxable year when the transactions are conducted. The PRC enterprise income tax law requires every enterprise in China to submit its annual enterprise income tax return together with a report on transactions with its related parties to the relevant tax authorities. The tax authorities may impose reasonable adjustments on taxation if they have identified any related party transactions that are inconsistent with arm’s length principles. We may face material and adverse tax consequences if the PRC tax authorities determine that the contractual arrangements between the WFOE, our wholly-owned subsidiary in China, our consolidated VIEs in China, and the shareholders of our VIEs were not entered into on an arm’s length basis in such a way as to result in an impermissible reduction in taxes under applicable PRC laws, rules and regulations, and adjust our VIEs’ income in the form of a transfer pricing adjustment. A transfer pricing adjustment could, among other things, result in a reduction of expense deductions recorded by our VIEs for PRC tax purposes, which could in turn increase its tax liabilities without reducing the WFOE’s tax expenses. In addition, if the WFOE requests that the shareholders of our VIEs transfer their equity interests in the VIEs at nominal or no value pursuant to these contractual arrangements, such transfer could be viewed as a gift and subject our VIEs to PRC income tax. Furthermore, the PRC tax authorities may impose late payment fees and other penalties on our VIEs for the adjusted but unpaid taxes according to the applicable regulations. Our financial position could be materially and adversely affected if our consolidated variable interest entities’ tax liabilities increase or if they are required to pay late payment fees and other penalties.

We may lose the ability to use and enjoy assets held by our consolidated VIEs that are material to the operation of our business if one or more of the entities goes bankrupt or becomes subject to a dissolution or liquidation proceeding.

Our consolidated VIEs hold certain assets that are material to the operation of our business, including domain names and equipment for our online trading platform. Under the contractual arrangements, our consolidated VIEs may not and their shareholders may not cause them to, in any manner, sell, transfer, mortgage or dispose of their assets or their legal or beneficial interests in the business without our prior consent. However, in the event our consolidated VIEs’ shareholders breach the these contractual arrangements and voluntarily liquidate our consolidated VIEs or our consolidated VIEs declare bankruptcy and all or part of their assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, or are otherwise disposed of without our consent, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If our consolidated VIEs undergo a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, independent third-party creditors may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering our ability to operate our business, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Changes in China’s economic, political or social conditions or government policies could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

Almost all of our operations are located in China. Accordingly, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations may be influenced to a significant degree by political, economic and social conditions in China generally and by continued economic growth in China as a whole.

The Chinese economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including the amount of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. Although the Chinese government has implemented measures emphasizing the utilization of market forces for economic reform, the reduction of state ownership of productive assets and the establishment of improved corporate governance in business enterprises, a substantial portion of productive assets in China are still owned by the government. In addition, the Chinese government continues to play a significant role in regulating industry development by imposing industrial policies. The Chinese government also exercises significant control over China’s economic growth through allocating resources, controlling payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy, and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies.

While the Chinese economy has experienced significant growth over the past decades, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy. The Chinese government has implemented various measures to encourage economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. Some of these measures may benefit the overall Chinese economy, but may have a negative effect on us. For example, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations. In addition, in the past the Chinese government has implemented certain measures, including interest rate increases, to control the pace of economic growth. These measures may cause decreased economic activity in China, and since 2012, China’s economic growth has slowed down. Any prolonged slowdown in the Chinese economy may reduce the demand for our products and services and materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Uncertainties in the interpretation and enforcement of Chinese laws and regulations could limit the legal protections available to us.

The PRC legal system is based on written statutes and prior court decisions have limited value as precedents. Since these laws and regulations are relatively new and the PRC legal system continues to rapidly evolve, the interpretations of many laws, regulations and rules are not always uniform and enforcement of these laws, regulations and rules involves uncertainties.

We cannot rule out the possibility that the PRC government will institute a licensing regime covering our industry at some point in the future. If such a licensing regime were introduced, we cannot assure you that we would be able to obtain any newly required licensing in a timely manner, or at all, which could materially and adversely affect our business and impede our ability to continue our operations.

From time to time, we may have to resort to administrative and court proceedings to enforce our legal rights. However, since PRC administrative and court authorities have significant discretion in interpreting and implementing statutory and contractual terms, it may be more difficult to evaluate the outcome of administrative and court proceedings and the level of legal protection we enjoy than in more developed legal systems. Furthermore, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies and internal rules (some of which are not published in a timely manner or at all) that may have retroactive effect. As a result, we may not be aware of our violation of these policies and rules until sometime after the violation. Such uncertainties, including uncertainty over the scope and effect of our contractual, property (including intellectual property) and procedural rights, could materially and adversely affect our business and impede our ability to continue our operations.

Substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the enactment timetable, interpretation and implementation of draft PRC Foreign Investment Law and how it may impact the viability of our current corporate structure, corporate governance and business operations.

MOFCOM published discussion drafts of the proposed Foreign Investment Law in January 2015 and December 2018, respectively, aiming to, upon its enactment, replace the trio of existing laws regulating foreign investment in China, namely, the Sino-foreign Equity Joint Venture Enterprise Law, the Sino-foreign Cooperative Joint Venture Enterprise Law and the Wholly Foreign-invested Enterprise Law, together with their implementation rules and ancillary regulations. The draft Foreign Investment Law embodies an expected PRC regulatory trend to rationalize its foreign investment regulatory regime in line with prevailing international practice and the legislative efforts to unify the corporate legal requirements for both foreign and domestic investments. MOFCOM is currently soliciting comments on the latest draft and substantial uncertainties exist with respect to its enactment timetable, interpretation and implementation. In the second draft, there are no regulations on contractual arrangements, variable interest entities or actual control, which were explicitly provided in the first draft. However, we cannot confirm whether there will be another draft which would significantly change the regulations regarding these matters. The first draft Foreign Investment Law or a similar draft, if enacted as proposed, may materially impact the viability of our current corporate structure, corporate governance and business operations in many aspects.

Among other things, the draft Foreign Investment Law or a similar draft expands the definition of foreign investment and introduces the principle of “actual control” in determining whether a company is considered a foreign-invested enterprise, or an FIE. The draft Foreign Investment Law specifically provides that entities established in China but “controlled” by foreign investors will be treated as FIEs. Once an entity is considered an FIE, it may be subject to the foreign investment restrictions or prohibitions set forth in a “Negative List” to be separately issued by the State Council later. If an FIE proposes to conduct business in an industry subject to foreign investment “restrictions” in the “Negative List,” the FIE must go through a market entry clearance by MOFCOM before being established. If an FIE proposes to conduct business in an industry subject to foreign investment “prohibitions” in the “Negative List,” it must not engage in the business. However, an FIE that is subject to foreign investment “restrictions,” upon market entry clearance, may apply in writing to be treated as a PRC domestic investment if it is ultimately “controlled” by PRC government authorities and its affiliates and/or PRC citizens. In this connection, “control” is broadly defined in the draft law to cover the following summarized categories: (i) holding 50% or more of the voting rights of the subject entity; (ii) holding less than 50% of the voting rights of the subject entity but having the power to secure at least 50% of the seats on the board or other equivalent decision-making bodies, or having the voting power to exert material influence on the board, the shareholders’ meetings or other equivalent decision-making bodies; or (iii) having the power to exert decisive influence, via contractual or trust arrangements, over the subject entity’s operations, financial matters or other key aspects of business operations. Once an entity is determined to be an FIE, it will be subject to the foreign investment restrictions or prohibitions set forth in a “Negative List”, if the FIE is engaged in an industry listed in the Negative List. Unless the underlying business of the FIE falls within the Negative List, which calls for market entry clearance by MOFCOM, prior approval from the government authorities as mandated by the existing foreign investment legal regime would no longer be required for establishment of the FIE.

The “variable interest entity” structure, or VIE structure, has been adopted by many PRC-based companies, including us, to obtain necessary licenses and permits in the industries that are currently subject to foreign investment restrictions in China. See “—Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure” and “Our Corporate History and Structure.” Under the draft Foreign Investment Law, variable interest entities that are controlled via contractual arrangement would also be deemed FIEs, if they are ultimately “controlled” by foreign investors. Therefore, for any companies with a VIE structure in an industry category that is included in the “Negative List”, the VIE structure may be deemed legitimate only if the ultimate controlling person(s) is/are of PRC nationality (either PRC companies or PRC citizens). Conversely, if the actual controlling person(s) is/are of foreign nationalities, then the variable interest entities will be treated as FIEs and any operation in the industry category on the “Negative List” without market entry clearance may be considered illegal.

The draft Foreign Investment Law or a similar draft has not taken a position on what actions will be taken with respect to companies currently employing a VIE structure, whether or not these companies are controlled by Chinese parties, while it is soliciting comments from the public on this point. If the enacted version of the Foreign Investment Law and the “Negative List” mandate further action, such as MOFCOM market entry clearance or certain restructuring of our corporate structure and operations, to be completed by companies with existing VIE structure like us, there may be substantial uncertainties as to whether we can complete these actions in a timely manner, or at all, and our business and financial condition may be materially and adversely affected.

Any lack of requisite approvals, licenses or permits applicable to our business may have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our business is subject to governmental supervision and regulation by the relevant PRC governmental authorities. Together, these government authorities promulgate and enforce regulations that cover many aspects of the collectibles and artwork trading and related services exchange platform. As a result, in certain circumstances it may be difficult to determine what actions or omissions may be deemed to be in violation of applicable laws and regulations.

We have made efforts to obtain all the applicable licenses and permits. We cannot assure you that we have obtained all the permits or licenses required for conducting our business in China or will be able to maintain our existing licenses or obtain new ones. If the PRC government determines that we are operating without the proper approvals, licenses or permits or promulgates new laws and regulations that require additional approvals or licenses or imposes additional restrictions on the operation of any part of our business, it has the power, among other things, to levy fines, confiscate our income, revoke our business licenses, and require us to discontinue the relevant parts of our business or to impose restrictions on the affected portion of our business. Any of these actions by the PRC government may have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

If any company incorporated in Hong Kong operating online collectibles and/or artwork trading platform is subject to PRC current or future laws and regulations regarding collectible or artwork trading business, our operation may be materially adversely effected due to the uncertainty whether we would be able to obtain approval from the provincial government and complete the filing with “Inter-Ministerial Joint Meetings of Clean-up and Corrective Actions of Various Trading Platforms” (the “Joint Meeting”) led by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (the “CSRC”).

According to “Decision Of The State Council On Cleaning Up And Corrective Actions on Various Trading Platforms And Taking Effective Precautions Against Financial Risks” (“Decision No.38”) promulgated by the State Council of the PRC on November 11, 2011 and effective on the same day, and “Opinions Of The General Office Of The State Council On The Implementation Of The Clean-Up And Corrective Actions Of Various Trading Platforms” (“Opinion No.37”) promulgated by the General Office of the State Council of the PRC on July 12, 2012 and effective on the same day, any trading places and their branches that violate any of the following provisions shall be cleaned up and rectified. Such parties must not:

(1) Divide any equity into equal shares for public offering. An “equal share public offering” is when a trading place uses its services and facilities to divide its equity into equal shares and sell them to investors. The relevant provisions of the company law and the securities law shall apply to the public issuance of shares by a joint stock company.

(2) Adopt centralized trading. The “centralized trading methods” referred to in this opinion include collective bidding, continuous bidding, electronic matching, anonymous trading, market makers and other trading methods, except for agreement transfers and legal auctions.

(3) Continuously list and trade the rights and interests in accordance with standardized trading units. The “standardized trading unit” referred to in this opinion refers to the minimum trading unit set for other equities other than equity, and trading at the minimum trading unit or integer multiples thereof. “Continuous listing transaction” refers to listing and selling the same trading variety within 5 trading days after buying or listing, and buying the same trading variety within 5 trading days after selling.

(4) Have a cumulative number of equity holders exceeding 200. Except as otherwise provided for by laws and administrative regulations, the cumulative number of actual holders of any equity shall not exceed 200 during the term of the company’s existence, no matter in the course of issuance or transfer.

(5) Carry out standardized contract trading by centralized trading. The “standardized contract” referred to in this opinion includes two situations: one is a unified contract established by the trading place with fixed terms other than price, which stipulates the delivery of a certain amount of the subject matter at a certain time and place in the future. The other is a contract made by the exchange that gives the buyer the right to buy or sell the agreed subject matter at a specified price at a certain time in the future.

(6) Without the approval of the relevant financial administrative department of the state council, establish either trading places for the trading of financial products such as insurance, credit and gold, or use any existing other trading places for the trading of financial products such as insurance, credit and gold.

Additionally, according to “Notice Concerning The Issuance Of Minutes Of The Special Session On The Clean-Up And Rectification Of Stamp And Commemorative Coins Trading Places” promulgated by the Office of the Joint Meeting on August 2, 2017, any stamp and commemorative coins using a stock issuance-like model to trading places mainly trading stamps by a concentrated bidding and “T+0” transaction method should cease to operate, unless they obtain approval from the provincial government and complete the required filing with the Joint Meeting.

We are an international online trading platform that provides state-of-the-art, convenient services for various types of collectibles and artwork, incorporated in Hong Kong. We provide an on-line platform for our clients to trading coins, stamps, ancient coins, and other collectibles and artwork. According to Rules for Trading Cultural And Art Collections for us (interim) (the “Trading Rules”), we do not provide an “equal share public offering”, which means we divide a trading subject into several shares, but only allow a physical subject to be traded as a whole. After trading, the original owner and the successful bidder can pick up the goods from the relevant storage company.

Currently, we use a “T+0” bidding method and allow our clients to centralize trading in our platform, which was not against Hong Kong current related laws and regulations regarding artwork trading. And, as a Hong Kong online collectible and artwork trading platform, we believe those laws and regulations regulating collectible and artwork trading in mainland China, such as Decision No.38 and Opinion No.37, do not apply to our trading platform. However, there may be substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of future PRC laws and regulations applicable to our business and that the PRC government or any other governmental authorities may in future impose license requirements or take further actions having material adverse effects on our business or finance.

We rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiary to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have, and any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiary to make payments to us could have a material adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business.

We are a holding company, and we rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiary for our cash and financing requirements, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders and service any debt we may incur. If our PRC subsidiary incurs debt on its own behalf in the future, the instruments governing the debt may restrict its ability to pay dividends or make other distributions to us. In addition, the PRC tax authorities may require Jiangsu Yanggu to adjust its taxable income under the contractual arrangements it currently has in place with our consolidated variable interest entities in a manner that would materially and adversely affect its ability to pay dividends and other distributions to us. See “—Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure—Contractual arrangements in relation to our consolidated variable interest entities may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and they may determine that we or our PRC consolidated variable interest entity owe additional taxes, which could negatively affect our financial condition and the value of your investment.”

Under PRC laws and regulations, our PRC subsidiary, as a wholly foreign-owned enterprise in China, may pay dividends only out of its respective accumulated after-tax profits as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. In addition, a wholly foreign-owned enterprise is required to set aside at least 10% of its accumulated after-tax profits each year, if any, to fund certain statutory reserve funds, until the aggregate amount of such funds reaches 50% of its registered capital. At its discretion, a wholly foreign-owned enterprise may allocate a portion of its after-tax profits based on PRC accounting standards to staff welfare and bonus funds. These reserve funds and staff welfare and bonus funds are not distributable as cash dividends.

Any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiary to pay dividends or make other distributions to us could materially and adversely limit our ability to grow, make investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our business, pay dividends, or otherwise fund and conduct our business. See also “—If we are classified as a PRC resident enterprise for PRC income tax purposes, such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non-PRC shareholders.”

PRC regulation of loans to and direct investment in PRC entities by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may delay or prevent us from using the proceeds of this offering to make loans to or make additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiary, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Under PRC laws and regulations, we are permitted to utilize the proceeds from this offering to fund our PRC subsidiary by making loans to or additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiary, subject to applicable government registration and approval requirements.

Any loans to our PRC subsidiary, which are treated as foreign-invested enterprises under PRC laws, are subject to PRC regulations and foreign exchange loan registrations. For example, loans by us to our PRC subsidiary to finance its activities cannot exceed statutory limits and must be registered with the local counterpart of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE. The statutory limit for the total amount of foreign debts of a foreign-invested company is the difference between the amount of total investment as approved by MOFCOM or its local counterpart and the amount of registered capital of such foreign-invested company.

We may also decide to finance our PRC subsidiary by means of capital contributions. These capital contributions must be approved by MOFCOM or its local counterpart. In addition, SAFE issued a circular in September 2008, SAFE Circular 142, regulating the conversion by a foreign-invested enterprise of foreign currency registered capital into RMB by restricting how the converted RMB may be used. SAFE Circular 142 provides that the RMB capital converted from foreign currency registered capital of a foreign-invested enterprise may only be used for purposes within the business scope approved by the applicable government authority and unless otherwise provided by law, may not be used for equity investments within the PRC. Although on July 4, 2014, the SAFE issued the Circular of the SAFE on Relevant Issues Concerning the Pilot Reform in Certain Areas of the Administrative Method of the Conversion of Foreign Exchange Funds by Foreign-invested Enterprises, or SAFE Circular 36, which launched a pilot reform of the administration of the settlement of the foreign exchange capitals of foreign-invested enterprises in certain designated areas from August 4, 2014 and some of the restrictions under SAFE Circular 142 will not apply to the settlement of the foreign exchange capitals of the foreign-invested enterprises established within the designate areas and such enterprises mainly engaging in investment are allowed to use its RMB capital converted from foreign exchange capitals to make equity investment, our PRC subsidiary is not established within the designated areas. On March 30, 2015, SAFE promulgated Circular 19, to expand the reform nationwide. Circular 19 came into force and replaced both Circular 142 and Circular 36 on June 1, 2015. Circular 19 allows foreign-invested enterprises to make equity investments by using RMB fund converted from foreign exchange capital. However, Circular 19 continues to prohibit foreign-invested enterprises from, among other things, using RMB fund converted from its foreign exchange capitals for expenditure beyond its business scope, providing entrusted loans or repaying loans between non-financial enterprises. In addition, SAFE strengthened its oversight of the flow and use of the RMB capital converted from foreign currency registered capital of a foreign-invested company. The use of such RMB capital may not be altered without SAFE’s approval, and such RMB capital may not in any case be used to repay RMB loans if the proceeds of such loans have not been used. Violations of these Circulars could result in severe monetary or other penalties. These circulars may significantly limit our ability to use RMB converted from the net proceeds of this offering to fund the establishment of new entities in China by our PRC subsidiary, to invest in or acquire any other PRC companies through our PRC subsidiary, or to establish new variable interest entities in the PRC.

In light of the various requirements imposed by PRC regulations on loans to and direct investment in PRC entities by offshore holding companies, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete the necessary government registrations or obtain the necessary government approvals on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to future loans to our PRC subsidiary or future capital contributions by us to our PRC subsidiary. If we fail to complete such registrations or obtain such approvals, our ability to use the proceeds we expect to receive from this offering to capitalize or otherwise fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Fluctuations in exchange rates could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and the value of your investment.

Our reporting currency is the U.S. dollar while the functional currency for our PRC subsidiary and consolidated variable interest entity is RMB. As a result, fluctuations in the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and RMB will affect the relative purchasing power in RMB terms of our U.S. dollar assets and the proceeds from this offering. Gains and losses from the remeasurement of assets and liabilities that are receivable or payable in RMB are included in our consolidated statements of operations. The remeasurement has caused the U.S. dollar value of our results of operations to vary with exchange rate fluctuations, and the U.S. dollar value of our results of operations will continue to vary with exchange rate fluctuations. A fluctuation in the value of RMB relative to the U.S. dollar could reduce our profits from operations and the translated value of our net assets when reported in U.S. dollars in our financial statements. This could have a negative impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations as reported in U.S. dollars. If we decide to convert our RMB into U.S. dollars for the purpose of making payments for dividends on our ordinary shares or for other business purposes, appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the RMB would have a negative effect on the U.S. dollar amount available to us. In addition, fluctuations in currencies relative to the periods in which the earnings are generated may make it more difficult to perform period-to-period comparisons of our reported results of operations.

There remains significant international pressure on the PRC government to adopt a flexible currency policy. Any significant appreciation or depreciation of the RMB may materially and adversely affect our revenues, earnings and financial position, and the value of, and any dividends payable on, our ordinary shares in U.S. dollars. For example, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars we receive from this initial public offering into RMB to pay our operating expenses, appreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar would have an adverse effect on the RMB amount we would receive from the conversion. Conversely, a significant depreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar may significantly reduce the U.S. dollar equivalent of our earnings, which in turn could adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares.

Very limited hedging options are available in China to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. To date, we have not entered into any hedging transactions in an effort to reduce our exposure to foreign currency exchange risk. While we may decide to enter into hedging transactions in the future, the availability and effectiveness of these hedges may be limited and we may not be able to adequately hedge our exposure or at all. In addition, our currency exchange losses may be magnified by PRC exchange control regulations that restrict our ability to convert RMB into foreign currency. As a result, fluctuations in exchange rates may have a material adverse effect on your investment.

Governmental control of currency conversion may limit our ability to utilize our net revenues effectively and affect the value of your investment.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility of the RMB into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China. We receive substantially all of our net revenues in RMB. Under our current corporate structure, our company in the Cayman Islands relies on dividend payments from our PRC subsidiary to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, such as profit distributions and trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from SAFE by complying with certain procedural requirements. Therefore, our PRC subsidiary is able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to us without prior approval from SAFE, subject to the condition that the remittance of such dividends outside of the PRC complies with certain procedures under PRC foreign exchange regulation, such as the overseas investment registrations by the beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents. But approval from or registration with appropriate government authorities is required where RMB is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. The PRC government may also at its discretion restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currencies to satisfy our foreign currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders.

Failure to make adequate contributions to various employee benefit plans as required by PRC regulations may subject us to penalties.

We are required under PRC laws and regulations to participate in various government sponsored employee benefit plans, including certain social insurance, housing funds and other welfare-oriented payment obligations, and contribute to the plans in amounts equal to certain percentages of salaries, including bonuses and allowances, of our employees up to a maximum amount specified by the local government from time to time at locations where we operate our businesses. The requirement of employee benefit plans has not been implemented consistently by the local governments in China given the different levels of economic development in different locations. As of the date of this prospectus, we believe that we have made adequate employee benefit payments. If we fail to make adequate payments in the future, we may be required to make up the contributions for these plans in the amount of 110% of the amount in the preceding month. If we fail to make or supplement contributions of social security premiums within the stipulated period, the social security premiums collection agency may enquire into the deposit accounts of the employer with banks and other financial institutions. In an extreme situation, where we failed to contribute social security premiums in full amount and do not provide guarantee, the social security premiums collection agency may apply to a Chinese court for seizure, foreclosure or auction of our properties of value equivalent to the amount of social security premiums payable, and the proceeds from auction shall be used for contribution of social security premiums.  If we are subject to deposit, seizure, foreclosure or auction in relation to the underpaid employee benefits, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

Our business is susceptible to fluctuations in the art market of China.

We conduct our business primarily in China. Our business depends substantially on the conditions of the PRC art market. Demand for collectibles and artwork in China has grown rapidly in the recent decade but such growth is often coupled with volatility in market conditions and fluctuation in prices. Fluctuations of supply and demand in China’s art market are caused by economic, social, political and other factors. Over the years, governments at both national and local levels have announced and implemented various policies and measures aimed to regulate the art markets. These measures have affected and may continue to affect the conditions of China’s art market and cause fluctuations in collectibles and artwork prices. To the extent fluctuations in the art market may adversely affect the trading volume on our platform, or require us to provide our services on unfavorable terms, our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

The legal rights we hold to use certain leased properties could be challenged by property owners or other third parties, which could prevent us from operating our business or increase the costs associated with our business operations.

For all of our business facilities and warehouses, we do not hold property ownership with respect to the premises under which those facilities are operated. Instead, we rely on leases with the property owners. Our general practice requires us to examine the title certificates of the property owners as part of our due diligence before entering into a lease with them. If we fail to identify encumbrances on the titles, our leases of such properties may be challenged or even invalidated by government authority or relevant dispute resolution institution. As a result, the development or operations of our facilities on such properties could be adversely affected.

In addition, we are subject to the risks of other potential disputes with property owners and to the forced closure of our facilities. Such disputes and forced closures, whether resolved in the favor of us, may divert our management attention, harm our reputation, or otherwise disrupt and adversely affect our business.

The approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission may be required in connection with this offering under a regulation adopted in August 2006, as amended, and, if required, we cannot predict whether we will be able to obtain such approval.

The Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Companies by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules, adopted by six PRC regulatory agencies in August 2006 and amended in 2009, requires an overseas special purpose vehicle formed for listing purposes through acquisitions of PRC domestic companies and controlled by PRC companies or individuals to obtain the approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, or the CSRC, prior to the listing and trading of such special purpose vehicle’s securities on an overseas stock exchange. In September 2006, the CSRC published a notice on its official website specifying documents and materials required to be submitted to it by a special purpose vehicle seeking CSRC approval of its overseas listings. The application of the M&A Rules remains unclear.

Our PRC counsel, Allbright Law Offices, has advised us based on their understanding of the current PRC laws, rules and regulations that the CSRC’s approval is not required for the listing and trading of our ordinary shares on NASDAQ in the context of this offering, given that:

However, there remains some uncertainty as to how the M&A Rules will be interpreted or implemented in the context of an overseas offering and the CSRC’s opinions summarized above are subject to any new laws, rules and regulations or detailed implementations and interpretations in any form relating to the M&A Rules. We cannot assure you that relevant PRC government agencies, including the CSRC, would reach the same conclusion as we do. If the CSRC or any other PRC regulatory agencies subsequently determines that we need to obtain the CSRC’s approval for this offering or if the CSRC or any other PRC government agencies promulgates any interpretation or implements rules before our listing that would require us to obtain CSRC or other governmental approvals for this offering, we may face adverse actions or sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies. Sanctions may include fines and penalties on our operations in the PRC, limitations on our operating privileges in the PRC, delays in or restrictions on the repatriation of the proceeds from this offering into the PRC, restrictions on or prohibition of the payments or remittance of dividends by our PRC subsidiary, or other actions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, reputation and prospects, as well as the trading price of our ordinary shares. The CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies may also take actions requiring us, or making it advisable for us, to halt this offering before the settlement and delivery of ordinary shares that we are offering. Consequently, if you engage in market trading or other activities in anticipation of and prior to the settlement and delivery of ordinary shares we are offering, you would be doing so at the risk that the settlement and delivery may not occur. In addition, if the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies later promulgate new rules or explanations requiring that we obtain their approvals for this offering, we may be unable to obtain a waiver of such approval requirements, if and when procedures are established to obtain such a waiver. Any uncertainties and/or negative publicity regarding such approval requirement could have a material adverse effect on the trading price of ordinary shares.

The M&A Rules and certain other PRC regulations establish complex procedures for some acquisitions of Chinese companies by foreign investors, which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth through acquisitions in China.

The M&A Rules discussed in the preceding risk factor and some other regulations and rules concerning mergers and acquisitions established additional procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities by foreign investors more time consuming and complex, including requirements in some instances that MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise. Moreover, the Anti-Monopoly Law requires that MOFCOM be notified in advance of any concentration of undertaking if certain thresholds are triggered. In addition, the security review rules issued by MOFCOM that became effective in September 2011 specify that mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors that raise “national defense and security” concerns and mergers and acquisitions through which foreign investors may acquire de facto control over domestic enterprises that raise “national security” concerns are subject to strict review by MOFCOM, and the rules prohibit any activities attempting to bypass a security review, including by structuring the transaction through a proxy or contractual control arrangement. In the future, we may grow our business by acquiring complementary businesses. Complying with the requirements of the above-mentioned regulations and other relevant rules to complete such transactions could be time consuming, and any required approval processes, including obtaining approval from MOFCOM or its local counterparts may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions, which could affect our ability to expand our business or maintain our market share.

PRC regulations relating to offshore investment activities by PRC residents may limit our PRC subsidiary’s ability to increase its registered capital or distribute profits to us or otherwise expose us or our PRC resident beneficial owners to liability and penalties under PRC law.

SAFE promulgated the Circular on Relevant Issues Relating to Domestic Resident’s Investment and Financing and Roundtrip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles, or SAFE Circular 37, in July 2014 that requires PRC residents or entities to register with SAFE or its local branch in connection with their establishment or control of an offshore entity established for the purpose of overseas investment or financing. In addition, such PRC residents or entities must update their SAFE registrations when the offshore special purpose vehicle undergoes material events relating to any change of basic information (including change of such PRC citizens or residents, name and operation term), increases or decreases in investment amount, transfers or exchanges of shares, or mergers or divisions. SAFE Circular 37 was issued to replace the Notice on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Administration for PRC Residents Engaging in Financing and Roundtrip Investments via Overseas Special Purpose Vehicles, or SAFE Circular 75. SAFE promulgated the Notice on Further Simplifying and Improving the Administration of the Foreign Exchange Concerning Direct Investment in February 2015, which took effect on June 1, 2015. This notice has amended SAFE Circular 37 requiring PRC residents or entities to register with qualified banks rather than SAFE or its local branch in connection with their establishment or control of an offshore entity established for the purpose of overseas investment or financing.

If our shareholders who are PRC residents or entities do not complete their registration as required, our PRC subsidiary may be prohibited from distributing its profits and proceeds from any reduction in capital, share transfer or liquidation to us, and we may be restricted in our ability to contribute additional capital to our PRC subsidiary. Moreover, failure to comply with the SAFE registration described above could result in liability under PRC laws for evasion of applicable foreign exchange restrictions.

Those who directly or indirectly hold shares in our company and are known to us as being PRC residents have completed the foreign exchange registrations required in connection with our recent corporate restructuring.

However, we may not be informed of the identities of all the PRC residents or entities holding direct or indirect interest in our company, nor can we compel our beneficial owners to comply with SAFE registration requirements. As a result, we cannot assure you that all of our shareholders or beneficial owners who are PRC residents or entities have complied with, and will in the future make or obtain any applicable registrations or approvals required by, SAFE regulations. Failure by such shareholders or beneficial owners to comply with SAFE regulations, or failure by us to amend the foreign exchange registrations of our PRC subsidiary, could subject us to fines or legal sanctions, restrict our overseas or cross-border investment activities, limit our PRC subsidiary’s ability to make distributions or pay dividends to us or affect our ownership structure, which could adversely affect our business and prospects.

Any failure to comply with PRC regulations regarding the registration requirements for employee stock incentive plans may subject the PRC plan participants or us to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

In February 2012, SAFE promulgated the Notices on Issues Concerning the Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Stock Incentive Plan of Overseas Publicly-Listed Company, replacing earlier rules promulgated in March 2007. Pursuant to these rules, PRC citizens and non-PRC citizens who reside in China for a continuous period of not less than one year who participate in any stock incentive plan of an overseas publicly listed company, subject to a few exceptions, are required to register with SAFE through a domestic qualified agent, which could be the PRC subsidiary of such overseas listed company, and complete certain other procedures. In addition, an overseas entrusted institution must be retained to handle matters in connection with the exercise or sale of stock options and the purchase or sale of shares and interests. We and our executive officers and other employees who are PRC citizens or who have resided in the PRC for a continuous period of not less than one year and who have been granted options or other awards will be subject to these regulations when our Company becomes an overseas listed company upon the completion of this offering. Failure to complete the SAFE registrations may subject them to fines and legal sanctions and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiary and limit our PRC subsidiary’s ability to distribute dividends to us. We also face regulatory uncertainties that could restrict our ability to adopt additional incentive plans for our directors, executive officers and employees under PRC law. See “Regulation—Regulations on Stock Incentive Plans.”

If we are classified as a PRC resident enterprise for PRC income tax purposes, such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non-PRC shareholders.

Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law and its implementation rules, an enterprise established outside of the PRC with a “de facto management body” within the PRC is considered a resident enterprise and will be subject to the enterprise income tax on its global income at the rate of 25%. The implementation rules define the term “de facto management body” as the body that exercises full and substantial control over and overall management of the business, productions, personnel, accounts and properties of an enterprise. In April 2009, the State Administration of Taxation issued a circular, known as Circular 82, which provides certain specific criteria for determining whether the “de facto management body” of a PRC-controlled enterprise that is incorporated offshore is located in China. Although this circular only applies to offshore enterprises controlled by PRC enterprises or PRC enterprise groups, not those controlled by PRC individuals or foreigners like us, the criteria set forth in the circular may reflect the State Administration of Taxation’s general position on how the “de facto management body” test should be applied in determining the tax resident status of all offshore enterprises. According to Circular 82, an offshore incorporated enterprise controlled by a PRC enterprise or a PRC enterprise group will be regarded as a PRC tax resident by virtue of having its “de facto management body” in China and will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax on its global income only if all of the following conditions are met: (i) the primary location of the day-to-day operational management is in the PRC; (ii) decisions relating to the enterprise’s financial and human resource matters are made or are subject to approval by organizations or personnel in the PRC; (iii) the enterprise’s primary assets, accounting books and records, company seals, and board and shareholder resolutions, are located or maintained in the PRC; and (iv) at least 50% of voting board members or senior executives habitually reside in the PRC.

We believe none of our entities outside of China is a PRC resident enterprise for PRC tax purposes. See “Taxation—People’s Republic of China Taxation.” However, the tax resident status of an enterprise is subject to determination by the PRC tax authorities and uncertainties remain with respect to the interpretation of the term “de facto management body.” As all of our management members are based in China, it remains unclear how the tax residency rule will apply to our case. If the PRC tax authorities determine that we or any of our subsidiaries outside of China is a PRC resident enterprise for PRC enterprise income tax purposes, then we or such subsidiary could be subject to PRC tax at a rate of 25% on its world-wide income, which could materially reduce our net income. In addition, we will also be subject to PRC enterprise income tax reporting obligations. Furthermore, if the PRC tax authorities determine that we are a PRC resident enterprise for enterprise income tax purposes, gains realized on the sale or other disposition of our ordinary shares may be subject to PRC tax, at a rate of 10% in the case of non-PRC enterprises or 20% in the case of non-PRC individuals (in each case, subject to the provisions of any applicable tax treaty), if such gains are deemed to be from PRC sources. It is unclear whether non-PRC shareholders of our company would be able to claim the benefits of any tax treaties between their country of tax residence and the PRC in the event that we are treated as a PRC resident enterprise. Any such tax may reduce the returns on your investment in our ordinary shares.

Regulatory bodies of the United States may be limited in their ability to conduct investigations or inspections of our operations in China.

From time to time, we may receive requests from certain U.S. agencies to investigate or inspect the Company’s operations, or to otherwise provide information. While we expect to comply with these requests from these regulators, there is no guarantee that such requests will be honored by those entities who provide services to us or with whom we associate, especially as those entities are located in China. Furthermore, an on-site inspection of our facilities by any of these regulators may be limited or entirely prohibited. Such inspections, though permitted by us and our affiliates, are subject to the unpredictability of the Chinese enforcement authorities, and may therefore be impossible to facilitate.

Enhanced scrutiny over acquisition transactions by the PRC tax authorities may have a negative impact on potential acquisitions we may pursue in the future.

The PRC tax authorities have enhanced their scrutiny over the direct or indirect transfer of certain taxable assets, including, in particular, equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise, by a non-resident enterprise by promulgating and implementing SAT Circular 59 and Circular 698, which became effective in January 2008, and a Circular 7 in replacement of some of the existing rules in Circular 698, which became effective in February 2015.

Under Circular 698, where a non-resident enterprise conducts an “indirect transfer” by transferring the equity interests of a PRC “resident enterprise” indirectly by disposing of the equity interests of an overseas holding company, the non-resident enterprise, being the transferor, may be subject to PRC enterprise income tax, if the indirect transfer is considered to be an abusive use of company structure without reasonable commercial purposes. As a result, gains derived from such indirect transfer may be subject to PRC tax at a rate of up to 10%. Circular 698 also provides that, where a non-PRC resident enterprise transfers its equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise to its related parties at a price lower than the fair market value, the relevant tax authority has the power to make a reasonable adjustment to the taxable income of the transaction.

In February 2015, the SAT issued Circular 7 to replace the rules relating to indirect transfers in Circular 698. Circular 7 has introduced a new tax regime that is significantly different from that under Circular 698. Circular 7 extends its tax jurisdiction to not only indirect transfers set forth under Circular 698 but also transactions involving transfer of other taxable assets, through the offshore transfer of a foreign intermediate holding company. In addition, Circular 7 provides clearer criteria than Circular 698 on how to assess reasonable commercial purposes and has introduced safe harbors for internal group restructurings and the purchase and sale of equity through a public securities market. Circular 7 also brings challenges to both the foreign transferor and transferee (or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer) of the taxable assets. Where a non-resident enterprise conducts an “indirect transfer” by transferring the taxable assets indirectly by disposing of the equity interests of an overseas holding company, the non-resident enterprise being the transferor, or the transferee, or the PRC entity which directly owned the taxable assets may report to the relevant tax authority such indirect transfer. Using a “substance over form” principle, the PRC tax authority may disregard the existence of the overseas holding company if it lacks a reasonable commercial purpose and was established for the purpose of reducing, avoiding or deferring PRC tax. As a result, gains derived from such indirect transfer may be subject to PRC enterprise income tax, and the transferee or other person who is obligated to pay for the transfer is obligated to withhold the applicable taxes, currently at a rate of 10% for the transfer of equity interests in a PRC resident enterprise.

We face uncertainties on the reporting and consequences on future private equity financing transactions, share exchange or other transactions involving the transfer of shares in our company by investors that are non-PRC resident enterprises. The PRC tax authorities may pursue such non-resident enterprises with respect to a filing or the transferees with respect to withholding obligation, and request our PRC subsidiaries to assist in the filing. As a result, we and non-resident enterprises in such transactions may become at risk of being subject to filing obligations or being taxed, under Circular 59 or Circular 698 and Circular 7, and may be required to expend valuable resources to comply with Circular 59, Circular 698 and Circular 7 or to establish that we and our non-resident enterprises should not be taxed under these circulars, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

The PRC tax authorities have the discretion under SAT Circular 59, Circular 698 and Circular 7 to make adjustments to the taxable capital gains based on the difference between the fair value of the taxable assets transferred and the cost of investment. Although we currently have no plans to pursue any acquisitions in China or elsewhere in the world, we may pursue acquisitions in the future that may involve complex corporate structures. If we are considered a non-resident enterprise under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law and if the PRC tax authorities make adjustments to the taxable income of the transactions under SAT Circular 59 or Circular 698 and Circular 7, our income tax costs associated with such potential acquisitions will be increased, which may have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

If we cannot effectively secure our network, customers’ personal information, which we collect through our online platform, may be subject to leakage or theft, and if the regulators believe we have failed to fulfill our network security obligations, our online platform may be required to suspend operations and rectification, which may have a material adverse effect on our operations and financial results due to the large amount of our daily trading conducted online.

On November 7, 2016, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the PRC (the “NPC”) promulgated the Cybersecurity Law of the PRC (“Cybersecurity Law”) which became effective on June 1, 2017. Under this law, network operators must provide cybersecurity protection and protect the integrity, confidentiality and availability of network data. The Cybersecurity Law also standardizes the collection and usage of personal information and requires network operators to protect users’ privacy security. If a network operator violates the Cybersecurity Law, it can face various penalties, including but not limited to the suspension of related business, winding up, shutting down its websites, and revocation of its business license, all of which may be imposed by the relevant authority, along with fines up to RMB 1 million (approximately $145,985) if severe damage occurred.

We collect and process the personal information of the customers who register on our online platforms, for the purpose of managing and maintaining our customers and their trading information. Nanjing Yanyu, one of the wholly-owned subsidiaries of Jiangsu Yanggu, which having a primary business to provide technical support for International Exchange’s online collectibles and art e-commerce platform, established network security policies, including Data Security Management Measures, Data Center Network Security Management Rules, Information Security Management Rules and an Information Security Emergency Plan. We will also publish “Investor Information Protection Policy” on our online platform, to help the customers who register on our online platforms understand what, where and how their private information be collected and used by International Exchange and its affiliates and what measures we will take to protect their personal information. Nonetheless, we cannot assure that our cybersecurity protection rules and related technical measures are adequate to prevent network data in our online platform from being breached, stolen or tampered with. If our online platform network is at risk, we may be required by competent cybersecurity supervision authorities to suspend online platforms before rectification and we may be fined up to RMB 1,000,000 if it is found that our online platform has material security risks or if severe cybersecurity events occur due to failure of our network security protection.

Although the subsidiary of our VIE operates and maintains the network platform in mainland China, our main business, providing collectibles and artwork e-commerce services, is conducted by International Exchange in Hong Kong. Therefore, due to the lack of clarity in the Personal Information Cross-Border Transfer Safety Assessment Measures (Draft) and its enforcement by the relevant government authorities, our business model may be considered involving transfer of customers’ personal information across border and we may be subject to the Personal Information Cross-Border Transfer Safety Assessment Measures (Draft). We cannot guarantee that we can pass the safety assessment for cross-border transfer of personal information required by the Personal Information Cross-Border Transfer Safety Measures (Draft). If we fail this assessment, International Exchange may not use customers’ personal information stored in mainland China to process its tradings on the online platform, which would result in a significant adverse impact on our business operations.

On June 13, 2019, the State Internet Information Office of the PRC issued a public comment draft of Private Information Cross-Border Transfer Safety Assessment Measures (“Personal Information Safety Measures (Public Draft)”) which will be enforced by the relevant provincial network information office once it becomes effective. The Personal Information Safety Measures (Public Draft) is formulated in accordance with the Cybersecurity Law and it requires that before the personal information can be transferred out of China, the network operator shall report its request for safety assessment to the provincial network information office, and such office shall complete the safety assessment, typically within 15 working days. A new security assessment shall be carried out every two years, or in the event of a change in purpose of the cross-border transfer of personal information or a change in the type or overseas storage period of such information. Any relevant network information office has the authority to suspend or termination the personal information transfer activities from any network operators, if any of the following situations occur: (i) the network operators or receivers experience a severe data leakage, data abuse and other similar events; (ii) the individuals who provide personal information are unable to protect his/her legitimate rights and interests; or (iii) the network operators or receivers are not capable of protecting personal information safety.

We operate and maintain our online platform for collectibles and artwork trading through Nanjing Yanyu, one of the subsidiaries of our VIE in mainland China. However, we provide collectibles and artwork e-commerce services to art collectors and artwork investors through International Exchange in Hong Kong. The Personal Information Safety Measures (Public Draft) is still at public comment stage and has not been effective yet, and it is not clear whether International Exchange using customers’ personal information on our platform in Hong Kong comes under the scope of “the cross-border transfer of personal information”. If we are required to apply for the safety assessment required by the Personal Information Safety Measures (Public Draft) in the future when it becomes effective, we cannot assure that we will pass this safety assessment, which may have a material adverse effect on our operations and financial results.

RISKS RELATED TO DOING BUSINESS IN HONG KONG

The Hong Kong legal system embodies uncertainties which could limit the legal protections available to you and us.

As one of the conditions for the handover of the sovereignty of Hong Kong to China, China had to accept some conditions such as Hong Kong’s Basic Law before its return. The Basic Law ensured Hong Kong will retain its own currency (the Hong Kong Dollar), legal system, parliamentary system and people’s rights and freedom for fifty years from 1997. This agreement has given Hong Kong the freedom to function in a high degree of autonomy. The Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong is responsible for its own domestic affairs including, but not limited to, the judiciary and courts of last resort, immigration and customs, public finance, currencies and extradition. Hong Kong continues using the English common law system.

However, if the PRC reneges on its agreement to allow Hong Kong to function autonomously, this could potentially impact Hong Kong’s common law legal system and may in turn bring about uncertainty in, for example, the enforcement of our contractual rights. This could, in turn, materially and adversely affect our business and operation. Additionally, intellectual property rights and confidentiality protections in Hong Kong may not be as effective as in the United States or other countries. Accordingly, we cannot predict the effect of future developments in the Hong Kong legal system, including the promulgation of new laws, changes to existing laws or the interpretation or enforcement thereof, or the preemption of local regulations by national laws. These uncertainties could limit the legal protections available to us, including our ability to enforce our agreements with our customers.

It will be difficult to acquire jurisdiction and enforce liabilities against our officers, directors and assets based in Hong Kong.

Certain of our assets will be located in Hong Kong and our officers and our present directors reside outside of the United States. As a result, it may not be possible for United States investors to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties of our directors and officers under Federal securities laws.

We may have difficulty establishing adequate management, legal and financial controls in Hong Kong, which could impair our planning processes and make it difficult to provide accurate reports of our operating results.

Although we will be required to implement internal controls, we may have difficulty in hiring and retaining a sufficient number of qualified employees to work in Hong Kong in these areas. As a result of these factors, we may experience difficulty in establishing the required controls, making it difficult for management to forecast its needs and to present the results of our operations accurately at all times. If we are unable to establish the required controls, market makers may be reluctant to make a market in our stock and investors may be reluctant to purchase our stock, which would make it difficult for you to sell any shares that you may own or acquire.

Our business may be affected by the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance of Hong Kong.

Members of our leading online platforms in Hong Kong, including China International Assets and Equity of Artworks Exchange Limited, would need to provide personal information during registration and our online platforms may monitor the online behavior of the members so as to gather data for market trend analysis and upgrade our website. As such, our business in Hong Kong is subject to Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Chapter 486 of the Laws of Hong Kong) (“PDPO”), which aims to protect the privacy of individuals of their personal data. The PDPO imposes a statutory duty on data users to comply with the requirements of the six data protection principles (the “Data Protection Principles”) contained in Schedule 1 to the PDPO. The PDPO provides that a data user shall not do an act, or engage in a practice, that contravenes a Data Protection Principle unless the act or practice, as the case may be, is required or permitted under the PDPO. If we violate the PDPO, we may be subject to fines and/or other penalties and may incur legal costs and experience negative media coverage, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and reputation. 

Risks Related to Our Ordinary Shares and This Offering

There has been no public market for our shares prior to this offering, and if an active trading market does not develop you may not be able to resell our shares at or above the price you paid, or at all. 

Prior to this public offering, there has been no public market for our ordinary shares. We have applied to have our ordinary shares listed on NASDAQ.  If an active trading market for our ordinary shares does not develop after this offering, the market price and liquidity of our ordinary shares will be materially adversely affected. The initial public offering price for our ordinary shares will be determined by negotiations between us and the underwriters and may bear little or no relationship to the market price for our ordinary shares after the public offering. You may not be able to sell any ordinary shares that you purchase in the offering at or above the initial public offering price.  Accordingly, investors should be prepared to face a complete loss of their investment. 

Our ordinary shares may be thinly traded and you may be unable to sell at or near ask prices or at all if you need to sell your shares to raise money or otherwise desire to liquidate your shares. 

Assuming our ordinary shares begin trading on NASDAQ, our ordinary shares may be “thinly-traded”, meaning that the number of persons interested in purchasing our ordinary shares at or near bid prices at any given time may be relatively small or non-existent. This situation may be attributable to a number of factors, including the fact that we are relatively unknown to stock analysts, stock brokers, institutional investors and others in the investment community that generate or influence sales volume, and that even if we came to the attention of such persons, they tend to be risk-averse and might be reluctant to follow an unproven company such as ours or purchase or recommend the purchase of our shares until such time as we became more seasoned.  As a consequence, there may be periods of several days or more when trading activity in our shares is minimal or non-existent, as compared to a seasoned issuer which has a large and steady volume of trading activity that will generally support continuous sales without an adverse effect on share price. A broad or active public trading market for our ordinary shares may not develop or be sustained. 

The market price for our ordinary shares may be volatile. 

The market price for our ordinary shares may be volatile and subject to wide fluctuations due to factors such as: 

In addition, the securities market has from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are not related to the operating performance of particular companies.  These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares. 

Volatility in our ordinary shares price may subject us to securities litigation.

The market for our ordinary shares may have, when compared to seasoned issuers, significant price volatility and we expect that our share price may continue to be more volatile than that of a seasoned issuer for the indefinite future. In the past, plaintiffs have often initiated securities class action litigation against a company following periods of volatility in the market price of its securities. We may, in the future, be the target of similar litigation. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and liabilities and could divert management’s attention and resources. 

We have broad discretion in the use of the net proceeds from this offering and may not use them effectively. 

Our management will have broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds, including for any of the purposes described in the section entitled “Use of Proceeds,” and you will not have the opportunity as part of your investment decision to assess whether the net proceeds are being used appropriately. Because of the number and variability of factors that will determine our use of the net proceeds from this offering, their ultimate use may vary substantially from their currently intended use. The failure by our management to apply these funds effectively could harm our business.

In order to raise sufficient funds to enhance operations, we may have to issue additional securities at prices which may result in substantial dilution to our shareholders.

If we raise additional funds through the sale of equity or convertible debt, our current shareholders’ percentage ownership will be reduced. In addition, these transactions may dilute the value of ordinary shares outstanding. We may have to issue securities that may have rights, preferences and privileges senior to our ordinary shares. We cannot provide assurance that we will be able to raise additional funds on terms acceptable to us, if at all. If future financing is not available or is not available on acceptable terms, we may not be able to fund our future needs, which would have a material adverse effect on our business plans, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.

We are not likely to pay cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

We currently intend to retain any future earnings for use in the operation and expansion of our business. Accordingly, we do not expect to pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future, but will review this policy as circumstances dictate. Should we determine to pay dividends in the future, our ability to do so will depend upon the receipt of dividends or other payments from the WFOE. The WFOE may, from time to time, be subject to restrictions on its ability to make distributions to us, including restrictions on the conversion of RMB into U.S. dollars or other hard currency and other regulatory restrictions.

You may face difficulties in protecting your interests as a shareholder, as Cayman Islands law provides substantially less protection when compared to the laws of the United States and it may be difficult for a shareholder of ours to effect service of process or to enforce judgements obtained in the United States courts.

Our corporate affairs are governed by our current memorandum and articles of association and by the Companies Law (2018 Revision) and common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take legal action against our directors and us, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law of the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands as well as from English common law. Decisions of the Privy Council (which is the final court of appeal for British overseas territories such as the Cayman Islands) are binding on a court in the Cayman Islands. Decisions of the English courts, and particularly the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and the Court of Appeal are generally of persuasive authority but are not binding on the courts of the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under Cayman Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedents in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States, and provide significantly less protection to investors. In addition, Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to initiate a shareholder derivative action before the United States federal courts. The Cayman Islands courts are also unlikely to impose liabilities against us in original actions brought in the Cayman Islands, based on certain civil liability provisions of United States securities laws.

Currently, all of our operations are conducted outside the United States, and substantially all of our assets are located outside the United States. All of our directors and officers are nationals or residents of jurisdictions other than the United States and a substantial portion of their assets are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for a shareholder to effect service of process within the United States upon these persons, or to enforce against us or them judgments obtained in United States courts, including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States.

As a result of all of the above, our shareholders may have more difficulty in protecting their interests through actions against us or our officers, directors or major shareholders than would shareholders of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction in the United States. 

We are a foreign private issuer within the meaning of the rules under the Exchange Act, and as such we are exempt from certain provisions applicable to United States domestic public companies. 

We are a foreign private issuer within the meaning of the rules under the Exchange Act. As such, we are exempt from certain provisions applicable to United States domestic public companies. For example:

We currently intend to file annual reports on Form 20-F and reports on Form 6-K as a foreign private issuer. Accordingly, our shareholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. 

We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies, this could make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.

We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act. Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

As an “emerging growth company” under applicable law, we will be subject to lessened disclosure requirements. Such reduced disclosure may make our ordinary shares less attractive to investors.

For as long as we remain an “emerging growth company”, as defined in the JOBS Act, we will elect to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies”, including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.  Because of these lessened regulatory requirements, our shareholders would be left without information or rights available to shareholders of more mature companies. If some investors find our ordinary shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our ordinary shares and our share price may be more volatile. 

If we are classified as a passive foreign investment company, United States taxpayers who own our ordinary shares may have adverse United States federal income tax consequences.

A non-U.S. corporation such as ourselves will be classified as a passive foreign investment company, which is known as a PFIC, for any taxable year if, for such year, either:

Passive income generally includes dividends, interest, rents and royalties (other than rents or royalties derived from the active conduct of a trade or business) and gains from the disposition of passive assets.

If we are determined to be a PFIC for any taxable year (or portion thereof) that is included in the holding period of a U.S. taxpayer who holds our ordinary shares, the U.S. taxpayer may be subject to increased U.S. federal income tax liability and may be subject to additional reporting requirements.

Depending on the amount of cash we raise in this offering, together with any other assets held for the production of passive income, it is possible that, for our 2019 taxable year or for any subsequent year, more than 50% of our assets may be assets which produce passive income. We will make this determination following the end of any particular tax year. Although the law in this regard is unclear, we treat our consolidated affiliated entities as being owned by us for United States federal income tax purposes, not only because we exercise effective control over the operation of such entities but also because we are entitled to substantially all of their economic benefits, and, as a result, we consolidate their operating results in our consolidated financial statements. For purposes of the PFIC analysis, in general, a non-U.S. corporation is deemed to own its pro rata share of the gross income and assets of any entity in which it is considered to own at least 25% of the equity by value.

For a more detailed discussion of the application of the PFIC rules to us and the consequences to U.S. taxpayers if we were determined to be a PFIC, see “Taxation — United States Federal Income Taxation — Passive Foreign Investment Company.”

We will incur increased costs as a result of being a public company, particularly after we cease to qualify as an “emerging growth company.”

Upon consummation of this offering, we will incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses as a public company that we did not incur as a private company. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as well as rules subsequently implemented by the SEC and NASDAQ, impose various requirements on the corporate governance practices of public companies. We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act and will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of this offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our ordinary shares that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period.  An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced reporting and other requirements that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies. These provisions include exemption from the auditor attestation requirement under Section 404 in the assessment of the emerging growth company’s internal control over financial reporting and permission to delay adopting new or revised accounting standards until such time as those standards apply to private companies.

Compliance with these rules and regulations increases our legal and financial compliance costs and makes some corporate activities more time-consuming and costly. After we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” or until five years following the completion of our initial public offering, whichever is earlier, we expect to incur significant expenses and devote substantial management effort toward ensuring compliance with the requirements of Section 404 and the other rules and regulations of the SEC. For example, as a public company, we will be required to increase the number of independent directors and adopt policies regarding internal controls and disclosure controls and procedures. We will incurred additional costs in obtaining director and officer liability insurance. In addition, we will incur additional costs associated with our public company reporting requirements. It may also be more difficult for us to find qualified persons to serve on our board of directors or as executive officers. We are currently evaluating and monitoring developments with respect to these rules and regulations, and we currently estimate that we will incur approximately $600,000 per year in professional fees and other expenses as a result of being a public company.

Our Chairman and two other shareholders will have substantial influence over our company and their interests may not be aligned with the interests of our other shareholders.

Currently, Mun Wah Wan, Chairman of our board of directors beneficially owns 25% of our outstanding ordinary shares, and each of Aimin Kong and Huajun Gao beneficially owns 16.13% of our outstanding ordinary shares, and, collectively, will beneficially own 57.26% of our outstanding ordinary shares upon completion of our initial public offering. As a result of their significant shareholding, these shareholders have, and will continue to have, substantial influence over our business, including decisions regarding mergers, consolidations and the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, election of directors and other significant corporate actions. They may take actions that are not in the best interests of us or our other shareholders. This concentration of ownership may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company, which could deprive our shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of our company and might reduce the market price of our ordinary shares. For more information regarding our principal shareholders and their affiliated entities, see “Principal Shareholders.”

If a limited number of participants in this offering purchase a significant percentage of the offering, the effective public float may be smaller than anticipated and the price of our ordinary shares may be volatile, which could subject us to securities litigation and make it more difficult for you to sell your shares.

As a company conducting a relatively small public offering, we are subject to the risk that a small number of investors will purchase a high percentage of the offering. While the underwriters are required to sell shares in this offering to at least 300 round lot shareholders (a round lot shareholder is a shareholder who purchases at least 100 shares) and at least 50% the minimum required number of round lot holders must each hold unrestricted shares with a minimum market value of $2,500 in order to ensure that we meet the NASDAQ initial listing standards, we have not otherwise imposed any additional obligations on the underwriters as to the maximum number of shares they may place with individual investors. If, in the course of marketing the offering, the underwriters were to determine that demand for our shares was concentrated in a limited number of investors and such investors determined to hold their shares after the offering rather than trade them in the market, other shareholders could find the trading and price of our shares affected (positively or negatively) by the limited availability of our shares. If this were to happen, investors could find our shares to be more volatile than they might otherwise anticipate. Companies that experience such volatility in their stock price may be more likely to be the subject of securities litigation. In addition, if a large portion of our public float were to be held by a few investors, smaller investors may find it more difficult to sell their shares.