Latest news with #RegencellBioscienceHoldings
The Age
19 hours ago
- Business
- The Age
Mystery $50 billion Chinese medical fortune collapses in days
When Yat-Gai Au was worth $US33 billion ($50 billion) on paper, he wasn't in his Hong Kong office. One week later, when his net worth plunged to $US10.1 billion, he wasn't around either. Officers at the headquarters of Regencell Bioscience Holdings said both times that Au made only short visits there, before turning away reporters. The firm, a NASDAQ-listed, Cayman Islands-incorporated traditional Chinese medicine company, occupies the whole ninth floor of a tower in Hong Kong's bustling Causeway Bay, including a reception area with a large table tennis table. Little is still known about the tiny, money-losing company whose shares exploded 82,000 per cent higher and suddenly made Au, its chief executive officer with an 86 per cent stake, richer on paper than some of the city's tycoons like Li Ka-shing. The fleeting nature of its rip-roaring rally has captivated and mystified observers from the US to Hong Kong. Morning Brew, a popular business account on X, flagged its stock move and wondered: 'Is there something I'm missing?' Regulators in the US, which closely monitor wild swings in stock prices, might soon be asking the same question, according to experts. Loading The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the watchdog for broker-dealers, has repeatedly said small, cheap stocks are more susceptible to fraud. These companies can be targets for pump-and-dump schemes in which frauds inflate the stock price and quickly sell their shares. The US Securities and Exchange Commission, meanwhile, has been increasingly wary about companies listed on US exchanges that are based overseas, and Regencell checks both boxes. The regulator on June 4 called on the public to weigh in on whether the agency needed to amend the definition of what's called a foreign private issuer, potentially limiting the number of companies that qualify for special status that lets them avoid filing quarterly financial reports or disclosing when executives buy or sell company shares. 'This is an example of very unusual movements in share prices,' said Richard Harris, founder and chief executive of Port Shelter Investment Management in Hong Kong. 'These movements could certainly trigger interest by investigators.'
Sydney Morning Herald
19 hours ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
Mystery $50 billion Chinese medical fortune collapses in days
When Yat-Gai Au was worth $US33 billion ($50 billion) on paper, he wasn't in his Hong Kong office. One week later, when his net worth plunged to $US10.1 billion, he wasn't around either. Officers at the headquarters of Regencell Bioscience Holdings said both times that Au made only short visits there, before turning away reporters. The firm, a NASDAQ-listed, Cayman Islands-incorporated traditional Chinese medicine company, occupies the whole ninth floor of a tower in Hong Kong's bustling Causeway Bay, including a reception area with a large table tennis table. Little is still known about the tiny, money-losing company whose shares exploded 82,000 per cent higher and suddenly made Au, its chief executive officer with an 86 per cent stake, richer on paper than some of the city's tycoons like Li Ka-shing. The fleeting nature of its rip-roaring rally has captivated and mystified observers from the US to Hong Kong. Morning Brew, a popular business account on X, flagged its stock move and wondered: 'Is there something I'm missing?' Regulators in the US, which closely monitor wild swings in stock prices, might soon be asking the same question, according to experts. Loading The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the watchdog for broker-dealers, has repeatedly said small, cheap stocks are more susceptible to fraud. These companies can be targets for pump-and-dump schemes in which frauds inflate the stock price and quickly sell their shares. The US Securities and Exchange Commission, meanwhile, has been increasingly wary about companies listed on US exchanges that are based overseas, and Regencell checks both boxes. The regulator on June 4 called on the public to weigh in on whether the agency needed to amend the definition of what's called a foreign private issuer, potentially limiting the number of companies that qualify for special status that lets them avoid filing quarterly financial reports or disclosing when executives buy or sell company shares. 'This is an example of very unusual movements in share prices,' said Richard Harris, founder and chief executive of Port Shelter Investment Management in Hong Kong. 'These movements could certainly trigger interest by investigators.'
Business Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Times
Mystery US$33 billion Chinese medicine fortune collapses in days
[HONG KONG] When Yat-Gai Au was worth US$33 billion on paper, he was not in his Hong Kong office. One week later, when his net worth plunged to US$10.1 billion, he was not around either. Officers at the headquarters of Regencell Bioscience Holdings said both times that Au only takes short visits there, before turning away reporters. The firm, a Nasdaq-listed, Cayman Islands-incorporated traditional Chinese medicine company, occupies the whole 9th floor of a tower in Hong Kong's bustling Causeway Bay, including a reception area with a large table-tennis table. Little is still known about the tiny, money-losing company whose shares exploded 82,000 per cent higher and suddenly made Au, its chief executive officer with an 86 per cent stake, richer on paper than some of the city's tycoons like Li Ka-shing. The fleeting nature of its rip-roaring rally has captivated and mystified observers from the US to Hong Hong. Morning Brew, a popular business account on X, flagged its stock move and wondered: 'Is there something I'm missing?' Regulators in the US, which closely monitor wild swings in stock prices, might soon be asking the same question, according to experts. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the watchdog for broker-dealers, has repeatedly warned that small, cheap stocks are more susceptible to fraud. These companies can be targets for pump-and-dump schemes in which fraudsters inflate the stock price and quickly sell their shares. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up The US Securities and Exchange Commission, meanwhile, has been increasingly wary about companies listed on US exchanges that are based overseas – and Regencell checks both boxes. The regulator on June four called on the public to weigh in on whether the agency needed to amend the definition of what's called a foreign private issuer, potentially limiting the number of companies that qualify for special status that lets them avoid filing quarterly financial reports or disclosing when executives buy or sell company shares. 'This is an example of very unusual movements in share prices,' said Richard Harris, founder and chief executive of Port Shelter Investment Management in Hong Kong. 'These movements could certainly trigger interest by investigators.' The SEC and Finra declined to comment on whether they were monitoring Regencell's moves. Finra's mission is to protect investors and safeguard market integrity, spokesperson Rita De Ramos said. 'In line with that mission, Finra continues to monitor the market for unusual trading activity, as part of our normal course of action.' Regencell did not respond to emails and phone calls for comment on its stock performance and its founder's fortune. The company's shares have retreated 74 per cent from their peak, shrinking Au's stake to about US$8.6 billion as of Jun 26. Founded in 2014, Regencell's main line of business is marketing and licensing traditional treatments for ADHD and autism spectrum disorder developed by the founder's father, Sik-Kee Au. It has exclusive rights over his traditional medicinal formulas, trademarked under the name Brain Theory. The firm posted net losses of US$4.4 million and US$6.1 million, respectively, for the fiscal years ended June 2024 and 2023, according to filings. Its chief medical officer position has been vacant since the last doctor to hold the job resigned in 2022. The younger Au attended the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley and worked at Deutsche Bank in the late 1990s. He suffered from learning disorders and speech problems, had poor grades and an uncontrollable temper, according to a video post on the company's Instagram account. Regencell's mission is to 'improve and save lives using a natural and holistic TCM formula to treat ADHD and ASD,' according to the same video. The company's official Instagram account has more than half a million followers. BeOne Medicines Ltd., the largest healthcare firm listed in Hong Kong, has just over 2,500. Regencell built out a following with the help of social-media campaigns on the platform that offered free tickets for Taylor Swift concerts in the US and Asia. The company's second-largest shareholder is Digital Mobile Venture, a firm ultimately owned by Taiwan's Samuel Chen and his wife Fiona Chang. Chen was an investor whose early investments in Zoom Video Communications made him a fortune when the company's stock soared almost 1,500 per cent during the pandemic. Chen, Chang and their children own a 55 per cent stake in Taipei-based Polaris Group, a biotechnology company developing anti-cancer drugs. He's also the biggest shareholder of Sonix Technology, a provider of integrated circuits listed in Taipei. Bloomberg News received no reply to emails sent to Polaris and Sonix seeking comments from Chen. While monitoring for wild price swings used to be done manually, the SEC and Finra now have programmes to automatically detect market anomalies, according to Erik Gordon, professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business. They can also compel companies to share if they know why their stock price soared or crashed or whether insiders cashed in at the peak. The absence of profits or revenues at Regencell isn't an automatic red flag; plenty of early-stage pharmaceutical companies have similar finances, he said. On Jun 18, two men and a woman arrived at Regencell's Hong Kong office seeking information about treatment for ADHD and dementia. They said they read about the stock's surge before arriving. The visitors were also turned away. An employee said its staff were not doctors, and directed them to the company's website. 'Early stage pharma companies can jump from a dollar to four dollars in 90 seconds if there's some news about one of their drugs under development doing well in a clinical trial,' Gordon said. In this case, 'what's interesting is there's no news.' BLOOMBERG
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Mystery $42 billion Chinese medical fortune collapses in days
Hong Kong – When Mr Au Yat-Gai was worth US$33 billion (S$42 billion) on paper, he was not in his Hong Kong office. One week later, when his net worth plunged to US$10.1 billion, he wasn't around either. Shares of Regencell Bioscience Holdings, the Nasdaq-listed company he founded, have plunged to US$20.19 as at June 27 from a high of US$78 on June 17. Officers at the headquarters of Regencell Bioscience Holdings said both times that Mr Au only takes short visits there, before turning away reporters. The Cayman Islands-incorporated traditional Chinese medicine company, occupies the whole ninth floor of a tower in Hong Kong's bustling Causeway Bay, including a reception area with a large table-tennis table. Little is still known about the tiny, money-losing company whose shares exploded 82,000 per cent higher and suddenly made Mr Au, its chief executive officer with an 86 per cent stake, richer on paper than some of the city's tycoons like Li Ka-shing. The fleeting nature of its rip-roaring rally has captivated and mystified observers from the United States to Hong Hong. Morning Brew, a popular business account on X, flagged it's stock move and wondered: 'Is there something I'm missing?' Regulators in the US, which closely monitor wild swings in stock prices, might soon be asking the same question, according to experts. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra), the watchdog for broker-dealers, has repeatedly warned that small, cheap stocks are more susceptible to fraud. These companies can be targets for pump-and-dump schemes in which fraudsters inflate the stock price and quickly sell their shares. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), meanwhile, has been increasingly wary about companies listed on US exchanges that are based overseas – and Regencell checks both boxes. The regulator on June 4 called on the public to weigh in on whether the agency needed to amend the definition of what's called a foreign private issuer, potentially limiting the number of companies that qualify for special status that lets them avoid filing quarterly financial reports or disclosing when executives buy or sell company shares. 'This is an example of very unusual movements in share prices,' said Richard Harris, founder and chief executive of Port Shelter Investment Management in Hong Kong. 'These movements could certainly trigger interest by investigators.' The SEC and Finra declined to comment on whether they were monitoring Regencell's moves. Regencell didn't respond to emails and phone calls for comment on its stock performance and its founder's fortune. Founded in 2014, Regencell's main line of business is marketing and licensing traditional treatments for ADHD and autism spectrum disorder developed by the founder's father, Au Sik-Kee. It has exclusive rights over his traditional medicinal formulas, trademarked under the name Brain Theory. The firm posted net losses of US$4.4 million and US$6.1 million, respectively, for the fiscal years ended June 2024 and 2023, according to filings. Its chief medical officer position has been vacant since the last doctor to hold the job resigned in 2022. The younger Au attended the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley and worked at Deutsche Bank in the late 1990s. He suffered from learning disorders and speech problems, had poor grades and an uncontrollable temper, according to a video post on the company's Instagram account. Regencell's mission is to 'improve and save lives using a natural and holistic TCM formula to treat ADHD and ASD,' according to the same video. The company's official Instagram account has more than half a million followers. BeOne Medicines, the largest healthcare firm listed in Hong Kong, has just over 2,500. Regencell built out a following with the help of social-media campaigns on the platform that offered free tickets for Taylor Swift concerts in the US and Asia. The company's second-largest shareholder is Digital Mobile Venture, a firm ultimately owned by Taiwan's Samuel Chen and his wife Fiona Chang. Mr Chen was an investor whose early investments in Zoom Video Communications made him a fortune when the company's stock soared almost 1,500 per cent during the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Chen, Ms Chang and their children own a 55 per cent stake in Taipei-based Polaris Group, a biotechnology company developing anti-cancer drugs. He's also the biggest shareholder of Sonix Technology, a provider of integrated circuits listed in Taipei. On June 18, two men and a woman arrived at Regencell's Hong Kong office seeking information about treatment for ADHD and dementia. They said they read about the stock's surge before arriving. The visitors were also turned away. An employee said its staff were not doctors, and directed them to the company's website. 'Early stage pharma companies can jump from a dollar to four dollars in 90 seconds if there's some news about one of their drugs under development doing well in a clinical trial,' Erik Gordon, professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, said. In this case, 'what's interesting is there's no news.' BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Insider
18-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
A Chinese herbal-medicine stock with no revenue has surged 60,000% this year. 5 things to know about the company's mysterious spike.
Shares of a little-known Chinese herbal medicine company have surged this year, with a fresh rally seeing the price quadruple in less than a week. It's been a head-scratching move, since the company is unprofitable, and shares have moved on seemingly no news. Regencell Bioscience Holdings, a Hong Kong-based firm specializing in traditional Chinese medicine, saw its US-listed stock soar 398% over the first two days of the week. But that move pales in comparison to the year-to-date increase, which amounted to roughly 60,000% through Tuesday's close. The company, which offers a proprietary oral formula it says can help treat disorders like ADHD and autism, has not generated any revenue, according to a regulatory filing from October. Over the last two fiscal years, the company said it lost a combined $10.4 million. So, what on earth is going on with this stock? Here's what to know. 1. The latest leg of the rally was triggered by a stock split Regencell, which trades under the ticker "RGC" on the Nasdaq, soared 283% on Monday after its 38-for-1 stock split went into effect. The company originally announced the stock split on June 2. While stock splits don't generate any value for the company — with overall market cap staying unchanged — they are often viewed as a bullish driver, since a lower per-share price can make a stock more appealing to retail investors. Regencell finished Monday with a market cap of $30 billion, which swelled further to $39 billion at Tuesday's close. That made it — at least temporarily — worth more than more well-known companies like Lululemon, Kraft Heinz, and Reddit. 2. Retail traders are intrigued, but cautious The rapid rise of Regencell stock was bound to catch the eye of the retail crowd, but even the enduringly bullish cohort is incredulous about what might be going on. Though Regencell is still less talked about than flagship stocks like Tesla and Apple, users on Reddit were quick to identify the surge this week, with some speculating that Regencell was the market's newest " meme stock." "Regencell is doing some weird stuff again," one user wrote on the subreddit r/shortsqueeze. "I'm trying to decide if I should pull out before a possible crash," another user, who said they were a longtime investor, said on the r/pennystocks subreddit. "I was gambling. Didn't have a clue what this company is," another user wrote on a separate thread on r/shortsqueeze about Regencell this month. "I've been watching it go the last two weeks and keep telling myself that it will crash as soon as I buy back in." 3. There's possible influence from RFK's vaccine skepticism Regencell stock was also surging around the time Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continued his anti-vaccine push, with the Health and Human Services Secretary removing all members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices last week, an independent panel that helps shape vaccination policies in the US. ADHD or Autism Spectrum Disorder. The formula, which is meant to be taken twice a day and aims to treat the "fundamental cause" of neurocognitive disorders, contains "only natural ingredients," the firm says. Its website lists various herbs with qualities that can help with blood circulation, digestion, "detoxication," and other functions. "We have not generated revenue from any TCM formulae candidates or applied for any regulatory approvals, nor have distribution capabilities or experience or any granted patents or pending patent applications and may never be profitable," the firm said in its October filing. 4. The stock has a tiny float, with most shares owned by the CEO The company only has a small number of shares available to trade, one factor that can explain the large swings in its stock. Out of its 500 million shares, just 30 million are available for public trading. That's a far lower percentage than the average for the more widely traded stocks that populate major indexes. Most of the company is owned by Regencell's CEO, Yat-Gai Au. He owned 86% of the company, or a $426 million stake in the first quarter, according to holdings data. His net worth has surged to as much as $33 billion this week, according to Bloomberg, vaulting him into the ranks of the world's richest people. Regencell's second-largest holder, Digital Mobile Venture, owned 7.6% of the company at the end of the first quarter, or around $37.5 million. RBC, BlackRock, and Morgan Stanley also owned miniscule amounts of the stock. 5. There's been controversy around shares of China- and Hong Kong-based firms Initial public offerings from Chinese or Hong Kong-based firms have been in the spotlight recently. A report from The Wall Street Journal this week said that more than 20 China -based companies and 17 Hong Kong-based companies that went public on the Nasdaq since 2020 have lost 50% of their value or more in a single trading day over the last two years. In 2022, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority issued a warning about a "heightened threat of fraud" related to small-cap companies that had recently gone public on US exchanges. Many of the companies associated with fraud had operators based in China or broker-dealers based in Hong Kong, the regulator said. In many cases, the broker-dealers were allocated 90% or more of the public float, Finra said, meaning they held most of the IPO shares. The small remaining float leaves stocks vulnerable to market manipulation, it said, referring to such companies as " ramp-and-dump schemes."
