Pandaily's Digest #20201230
U.S. Government Appeals Against TikTok Ban; Chinese Smartphone Sales Surge in India despite Calls for a Boycott, and Suzhou Digital Currency Pilot Ended on Dec. 27
Trump’s War on TikTok: The U.S. Government Appeals an Injunction Against its TikTok Ban
On Monday, the U.S. government appealed a federal judge’s ruling blocking the administration’s ban on Chinese short video sharing app TikTok. If successful, a new ruling may effectively prevent Americans from downloading and using the app, which currently attracts more than 100 million users in the country.
Chinese Smartphone Sales Surge in India Despite Calls for Boycott
India’s relations with China have been a bit rocky lately due to the border skirmish with Chinese troops close to Tibet in June. The anti-China sentiments in India have led to calls for a boycott of Chinese products and services in the past few months. However, the Chinese smartphone market in India is not bounded by the military standoff. According to a recent report from Canalys, Chinese vendors comprised 76% of total smartphone shipments in the third quarter, which has increased 2% from 2019.
Suzhou Digital Currency Trial Closes, Beijing Follows Up E-yuan Pilot
The digital currency trial in the city of Suzhou came to an end on Dec. 27 at midnight, Beijing local time, which lasted for two weeks starting from Dec. 11.
Meituan Faces Anti-monopoly Probe for Banning Alipay on Its Apps
Meituan, China’s largest provider of on-demand online services from food-delivery to ride-hailing, is facing an anti-monopoly investigation for abusing its dominant position as the government steps up scrutiny of the country’s biggest tech companies.
Celebrities’ Health Code Photos Leaked and Sold, Personal Information Safety Concerns Raised Again Amid Anti-Covid Prevention Measures
Recently, a series of celebrities’ Health Kit photos were leaked after users discovered they only needed to enter their names and ID numbers of celebrities to access their accounts.
Suning Partners with Hainan Tourism Investment Development to Expand Its Duty-Free Retail Market
On Dec. 28, China’s commercial giant Suning Group and its global business sector Suning International partnered with Hainan Tourism Investment Development Co. Ltd to expand its duty-free retail market.
Pop Mart, Miniso Stock Prices Plunge Following Chinese State Media Comments
Leading toymakers Pop Mart and Miniso stock prices plummeted after state-run media Xinhua commented that regulators should further steer the blind boxes industry away from unbalanced development.
China VC Weekly: Edtech, Autonomous Driving and Healthcare
Last week was big for edtech fundraising news. Two of China’s largest edtech unicorns, Zuoyebang and Yuanfudao, both raised huge sums, pushing their valuations through the roof. In other news, Tencent-backed healthcare community DXY bagged $500 million for technological innovation, while self-driving vehicle startup WeRide struck up a cooperation agreement with bus-maker Yutong Group.
AI Pharmaceutical Company Galixir Completes Two Financing Rounds, Raising Tens of Millions of Dollars
AI pharmaceutical company Galixir announced on Dec. 29 the completion of its latest two financing rounds, the Series A and Series A+, together worth tens of millions of dollars.
Xiaomi Rolls Out Mi 11, Packing Premium Screen and Snapdragon 888
Xiaomi has finally unveiled the Xiaomi Mi 11, its much anticipated latest flagship, on Monday evening Beijing time. The series will become the first-ever phones in the market to be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 SoC.