Siebert Financial has suspended its Buy rating and price target on Webull Financial (NASDAQ:BULL) following the report issued by the House Select Committee on China, which claims Webull has ties to the Chinese government. Webull shares were down almost 20% today after the Committee’s report was revealed, first reported by CNBC.
Siebert Analyst Brian Vieten shared the following statement:
“We are suspending our Buy rating and price target on Webull following reports that the bipartisan House Select Committee on China has concluded that the company’s China-linked ownership, technology infrastructure, workforce, and data architecture present national-security risks. The potential regulatory and operational implications of these findings create a level of uncertainty that we cannot reasonably incorporate into our estimates or valuation at this time. We are reviewing the committee’s findings and awaiting additional detail from the company. Therefore, our prior rating, price target, and estimates can no longer be relied upon.”
Webull issued a statement on the Committee’s claims. A spokesperson told CI that they are refuting the claims, saying the report included “significant inaccuracies and unsupported conclusions.”
“Webull’s US business is conducted from its global headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida, and its office in New York City, while U.S. customer data is stored in the U.S. and access to sensitive customer data is controlled by the US.”
Webull was founded in China in 2016. It is widely accepted that the Chinese government has deep ties within the private sector, which it sometimes leverages to gain insight into information and data.
Webull is a regulated broker-dealer that offers adjacent investment opportunities beyond traditional securities, like crypto and prediction markets.