Swiss exchange SIX says it got no guidance to pause GDR issuance by Chinese firms

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Swiss exchange SIX Group said on Wednesday it had received "no negative directions or guidance" from Chinese exchanges pointing to a pause or hold-up of approvals for Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) issuance by Chinese companies.

Bloomberg reported last week that China's securities regulator was holding up approvals for new GDR issuance by Chinese companies partly due to concern about arbitrage activities.

Reuters also reported last week that Chinese battery giant CATL's plan to raise at least $5 billion in Swiss GDRs had been delayed due to regulators' concerns over the size of the offering.

SIX is "in regular contact" with both the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, a spokesperson said in an email on Wednesday, in response to Reuters questions regarding GDR issuance.

The SIX comments came after the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on Monday approved plans by two Chinese companies to sell GDRs and list in Switzerland.

Shanghai- and Shenzhen- listed companies can sell GDRs and list on SIX as part of the China-Switzerland Stock Connect scheme.

(Reporting by Li Gu and Brenda Goh; writing by Samuel Shen; editing by Jason Neely)