Key Notes:
- Executive Order 13959 bans U.S. persons from transacting in publicly traded securities or derivatives or similar securities of any publicly traded Chinese companies designated by the U.S. Department of Defense as enabling Chinese military aims.
- It also authorizes the secretary of the treasury to identify subsidiaries of the named companies, which will be subject to the same restrictions.
- Ban takes effect on January 11, 2021.
On November 12, President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 13959, “Addressing the Threat from Securities Investments That Finance Communist Chinese Military Companies,” which prohibits U.S. persons (companies and individuals) from investing in certain Chinese firms found to be enabling the Chinese military. This is the latest effort to pressure China over what the Trump administration describes as abusive business practices in the United States.