The potential early public offering for Chinese electric car makers could be one of the biggest of the year.
The chairman of the House Committee of the Communist Party of China, Communist Party of China, urged two U.S. banks to withdraw from its first-time stock sales efforts for Chinese electric vehicle battery Titan, saying that undertaking the listing could face “significant regulatory, fiscal and reputational risks.”
Rep. John Mourenard (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Selection Committee on the Communist Party of China, urged the Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase on April 17 to halt further work on the early public offering of modern Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL).
Brian Moynihan, CEO of Letter to Bank of America and Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, stressed that in January the Department of Defense (DOD) designated CATL as a “Chinese Military Company.” This does not limit the company’s operations, but it can denounce the brand and affect the relationship between business and investment.
The world’s largest battery manufacturer is said to have links to paramilitary groups that run forced labor camps for Uyghur minorities in China’s Xinjiang region.
Moolenaar added that it is assessing the bank’s relationship with companies related to the Communist Party of China (CCP).
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“The House Selection Committee on China is actively considering these relationships and urges JPMorgan and Bank of America to prioritize national security and human rights in their decision-making,” he said.
The letter also pointed to President Donald Trump’s memo for America’s First Investment Policy. This is trying to discourage Wall Street from persuading US investors to fund CATL stock prices.
“CATL’s IPOs accurately represent the type of investment this policy is trying to stop,” Moolenaar said.
“This designation by the Department of Defense is incorrect because CATL has never engaged in military-related businesses or activities,” the company said in a statement on January 7th.
“CATL does not restrict us from doing business with entities other than DOD and is expected to have a substantial adverse effect on our business. We will actively participate in addressing false designations, including legal action, where necessary, to protect the interests of our company and our shareholders as a whole.”
The US is a substantial market for CATL’s business, accounting for 35% of the batteries in electrical storage systems in 2023.
US companies are under pressure from lawmakers to dismantle their working relationship with CATL.
The Epoch Times contacted the Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase for comments.
Deepseek and Nvidia are also in the spotlight
This is because the House Selection Committee recommended that the federal government investigate the threat poses to the United States by China’s artificial intelligence models.
The smartphone app deepseek and chatgpt icons are on Beijing’s smartphone screen on January 28th, 2025. Andy Wong/AP Photo
The report noted that a large-scale language model has leaked account data to the Chinese regime, creating security vulnerabilities for users.
“Deepseek represents a deep threat to our country’s security,” the report’s executive summary states.
US officials also say that Deepseek was built “using stolen US technology” and has a connection between military research and strategic labs, which is equally troubling.
Specifically, this report suggests AI models equipped with Advanced chips created by Semiconductor Juggernaut Nvidia. The House Selection Committee requested that Nvidia provide information to foreign companies regarding the sale of chips.
“The technology industry supports America when exporting to well-known companies around the world. If the government feels that it’s not, it will instruct us,” the statement said. “Our reported Singapore revenues often indicate the billing addresses of subsidiaries of US customers. Related products will be shipped elsewhere, including the US and Taiwan, rather than China.”
