NEW YORK, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- China's largest
display advertising company Focus Media Holdings (Nasdaq: FMCN) has
successfully exited the NASDAQ Stock Market in a $3.8 billion acquisition advised by JP Morgan.
The buyout is the largest China
based company in history that has abandoned the NASDAQ Stock
Market. Focus Media Holdings is an investment portfolio company of
global investment firm New York Global Group. The Carlyle Group led
the financing.
Focus Media joins more than 30 China based companies that have
left the NASDAQ Stock Market since 2011. The massive exodus from
the NASDAQ followed CleanTech Innovations, Inc.'s bizarre delisting
by the NASDAQ in 2011. NASDAQ delisted CleanTech for a vague and
ambiguous reason: "discretionary authority," even though
NASDAQ recognized that CleanTech more than complied with all
listing standards. The New York Stock Exchange also has
multiple listings of China based
companies. In contrast to the NASDAQ, the NYSE however has never
cited "discretionary authority" as the basis for delisting any
Chinese companies.
During CleanTech's delisting appeal within the NASDAQ, the
NASDAQ General Counsel's office allegedly rigged the appeal process
and reversed an independent NASDAQ Hearing & Listing Review
Council decision in favor of CleanTech. The General Counsel's
office claimed that the submission of CleanTech's brief in
accordance with instructions from the General Counsel's office
constituted an "ex parte" communication. CleanTech filed an
appeal to the SEC about 1.5 years ago and the SEC has not made a
decision. The SEC has no rule defining the time limit for making
such decisions.
CleanTech's mainly American shareholders have lost more than
$200 million. In June 2012, NASDAQ was also sued for massive
investor losses in NASDAQ's disastrous listing of Facebook.
In May 2013, the SEC levied a record
fine against the NADAQ for regulatory violations, as reported by
Fox Business News.
CleanTech also sued the NASDAQ for discrimination. In 2011,
Michael Emen, the Head of NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Department,
was caught stating on the record that the NASDAQ had made it a
policy to single out Chinese companies and delist them in order to
"send a message to the world about the Chinese." Former U.S.
Senator Arlen Specter, acting as legal counsel to CleanTech
Innovations, Inc., accused the NASDAQ of "a miscarriage of justice"
and sued the NASDAQ Stock Market and NASDAQ's Michael Emen for
racism and discrimination.
James N. Baxter, Chairman of New York Global Group commented:
"New York Global Group congratulates our portfolio company Focus
Media and its CEO Jason Jiang for
their determination and success in exiting the NASDAQ Stock Market.
However, as a proud American and a long time participant in the
U.S. capital markets, I am disappointed that the unregulated "short
and distort" tactics of often anonymous market manipulators have
created an atmosphere in which important international companies
such as Focus Media prefer to abandon the U.S. capital market."
(www.nyggroup.com)
SOURCE New York Global Group
