Jianpu Technology (AIJTY) Risk Factors

We conduct our business primarily through our PRC subsidiaries and our VIEs. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. The PRC government has significant oversight and discretion over the conduct of our business, and it may influence our operations, which could result in a material adverse change in our operation and/or the value of our ADSs. Also, the PRC government has recently indicated an intent to exert more oversight and control over offerings that are conducted overseas and/or foreign investment in China-based issuers. Any such action could significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to investors. In addition, implementation of industry-wide regulations directly targeting our operations could cause the value of our securities to significantly decline. Therefore, investors of our company and our business face potential uncertainty from actions taken by the PRC government affecting our business.

Starting in 2011 certain PRC-based accounting firms, including our independent registered public accounting firm, were affected by a conflict between U.S. and Chinese law. Specifically, for certain U.S.-listed companies operating and audited in mainland China, the SEC and the PCAOB sought to obtain from the Chinese firms access to their audit work papers and related documents. The firms were, however, advised and directed that under Chinese law, they could not respond directly to the U.S. regulators on those requests, and that requests by foreign regulators for access to such papers in China had to be channeled through the CSRC. In late 2012, this impasse led the SEC to commence administrative proceedings under Rule 102(e) of its Rules of Practice and also under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 against the Chinese accounting firms, including our independent registered public accounting firm. A first instance trial of the proceedings in July 2013 in the SEC's internal administrative court resulted in an adverse judgment against the firms. The administrative law judge proposed penalties on the firms including a temporary suspension of their right to practice before the SEC, although that proposed penalty did not take effect pending review by the Commissioners of the SEC. On February 6, 2015, before a review by the Commissioner had taken place, the firms reached a settlement with the SEC. Under the settlement, the SEC accepted that future requests by the SEC for the production of documents will normally be made to the CSRC. The firms failed to meet specified criteria, the SEC retained authority to impose a variety of additional remedial measures on the firms depending on the nature of the failure. Under the terms of the settlement, the underlying proceeding against the four PRC-based accounting firms was deemed dismissed with prejudice four years after entry of the settlement. The four-year mark occurred on February 6, 2019. While we cannot predict if the SEC will further challenge the four PRC-based accounting firms' compliance with U.S. law in connection with U.S. regulatory requests for audit work papers or if the results of such a challenge would result in the SEC imposing penalties such as suspensions. If additional remedial measures are imposed on the Chinese affiliates of the "big four" accounting firms, including our independent registered public accounting firm, we could be unable to timely file future financial statements in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act. In the event the four PRC-based accounting firms become subject to additional legal challenges by the SEC or PCAOB, depending upon the final outcome, listed companies in the United States with major PRC operations may find it difficult or impossible to retain auditors in respect of their operations in the PRC, which could result in financial statements being determined to not be in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, including possible delisting. Moreover, any negative news about any such future proceedings against these audit firms may cause investor uncertainty regarding China-based, U.S.-listed companies and the market price of our common stock may be adversely affected. If our independent registered public accounting firm was denied, even temporarily, the ability to practice before the SEC and we were unable to timely find another registered public accounting firm to audit and issue an opinion on our financial statements, our financial statements could be determined not to be in compliance with the requirements of the Exchange Act. Such a determination could ultimately lead to the delisting of the ADSs from the New York Stock Exchange or deregistration from the SEC, or both, which would substantially reduce or effectively terminate the trading of the ADSs in the United States.

A non-U.S. corporation will be classified as a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for any taxable year if either (1) at least 75% of its gross income for such year consists of certain types of "passive" income or (2) at least 50% of the value of its assets (based on an average of the quarterly values of the assets) during such year is attributable to assets that produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income. Based on our current and expected income and assets, (including goodwill) and the market price of our ADSs and Class A ordinary shares during 2020, it is likely that we will be classified as a PFIC for the taxable year ended December 31, 2020. Depending upon the composition of our income and assets and the market price of our ADSs and Class A ordinary shares during 2021 and subsequent taxable years, we could continue to be classified as a PFIC for 2021 and subsequent taxable years. In addition, it is possible that any subsidiary that we own would also be classified as a PFIC for such taxable years. If we are classified as a PFIC for any taxable year during which a U.S. Holder (as defined in "Item 10. Additional Information-E. Taxation-United States Federal Income Tax Considerations") holds our ADSs or Class A ordinary shares, certain adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences could apply to such U.S. Holder. See "Item 10. Additional Information-E. Taxation-Passive Foreign Investment Company Rules."

Our business is subject to a variety of PRC laws and regulations regarding cybersecurity, information security, privacy and data protection, and internet information in the PRC is regulated and restricted from a national security standpoint. According to the PRC National Security Law, the government shall establish institutions and mechanisms for national security review and regulation, conduct national security review on key technologies and IT products and services that affect or may affect national security. The PRC Criminal Law, as amended, prohibits companies and other entities, and their employees from obtaining a citizen's personal information through stealing or other unlawful means and selling or otherwise unlawfully disclosing a citizen's personal information obtained while performing duties or providing services. The PRC Civil Code, issued by the PRC National People's Congress on May 28, 2020 and effective on January 1, 2021, provides legal basis for privacy and personal information infringement claims under the PRC civil laws. PRC regulators, including the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Public Security, have increasingly focused on regulation in cybersecurity and data protection. According to the PRC Cybersecurity Law and relevant regulations, network operators, including us, are obligated to provide assistance and support in accordance with the law for public security and national security authorities to protect national security or assist with criminal investigations. In addition, the PRC Cybersecurity Law provides that personal information and important data collected and generated by operators of critical information infrastructure in the course of their operations in the PRC should be stored in the PRC, and the law imposes heightened regulation and additional security obligations on operators of critical information infrastructure. Furthermore, according to the Cybersecurity Review Measures promulgated by the Cyberspace Administration of China and certain other PRC regulatory authorities in April 2020, which became effective in June 2020, operators of critical information infrastructure must pass a cybersecurity review when purchasing network products and services which do or may affect national security. On August 17, 2021, the State Council promulgated the Security Protection Regulations for Critical Information Infrastructures, which will take effect on September 1, 2021 and provides that "critical information infrastructures" refers to those including important network facilities and information systems involved in important industries and fields such as public communication and information services, energy, transportation, water conservancy, finance, public services, e-government, national defense related science and technology industry, and other important industries and those which may seriously endanger national security, national economy and people's livelihood and public interests if they are damaged, malfunctioned, or if relevant data leakage occurs. Pursuant to these provisions, the competent governmental authorities and supervision and management departments of the abovementioned important industries and fields, being the protection departments, are responsible for formulating the rules on identifying the critical information infrastructures and to identify such critical information infrastructures in the related industries and fields, taking into account the factors including (i) the importance of the network facilities, information systems, etc., to the critical and core businesses in this industry and field; (ii) the degree of damage that may be caused by such network facilities, information systems, etc., if they are destroyed, malfunctioned, or relevant data leakage occurs; (iii) the relevant influence on other industries and fields. The relevant governmental authorities shall also notify operators who are being identified as critical information infrastructure operators. However, as these provisions were newly issued and the governmental authorities may further formulate detailed rules or explanations with respect to the interpretation and implementation of such provisions, the exact scope of "operator of critical information infrastructure" under the current regulatory regime remains unclear and may be subject to the review and discretion of the PRC governmental authorities. If we provide or are deemed to provide network products and services to critical information infrastructure operators, or we are deemed to be a critical information infrastructure operator, we would be required to follow cybersecurity review procedures, and could be subject to cybersecurity review by Cyberspace Administration of China and other relevant PRC regulatory authorities. During such review, we may be required to suspend new user registration in China and/or experience other disruptions of our operations, and such review could also result in negative publicity with respect to our Company and diversion of our managerial and financial resources. The PRC government is increasingly focused on data security, recently launching cybersecurity review against a number of mobile apps operated by several US-listed Chinese companies and prohibiting these apps from registering new users during the review period. On July 10, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China issued a revised draft of the Cybersecurity Review Measures for public comments, which required that, in addition to "operator of critical information infrastructure", any "data processor" carrying out data processing activities that affect or may affect national security should also be subject to the cybersecurity review, and further elaborated the factors to be considered when assessing the national security risks of the relevant activities, including among others, the risk of core data, important data or a large amount of personal information being stolen, leaked, destroyed, and illegally used or exited the country. As the revised draft Cybersecurity Review Measures have not been adopted and it remains unclear whether the formal version adopted in the future will have any further material changes, we still face uncertainties that the measures may be enacted, interpreted or implemented in ways that will negatively affect us. There can be no assurance that we would be able to complete the applicable cybersecurity review procedures in a timely manner, or at all, if we are required to follow such procedures. Any failure or delay in the completion of the cybersecurity review procedures may prevent us from using or providing certain network products and services, and may result in fines of up to ten times the purchase price of such network products and services being imposed upon us, if we are to be deemed a critical information infrastructure operator using network products or services without having completed the required cybersecurity review procedures. Furthermore, any non-compliance or perceived non-compliance with the PRC Cybersecurity Law, Cybersecurity Review Measures, or other related regulations may prevent us from using or providing certain network products and services, and may result in fines or other penalties such as making certain required rectification, suspending our related business, closing our website or taking down our operating app, and reputational damages or proceedings or actions against us by PRC regulatory authorities, consumers or others, which may have material adverse effect on our business, operation or financial conditions. As of the date of this annual report, we have not been involved in any investigations on cybersecurity review made by the Cyberspace Administration of China on such basis, and we have not received any inquiry, notice, warning, or sanctions in such respect. On June 10, 2021, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, or the SCNPC, promulgated the PRC Data Security Law, which will take effect in September 2021. The PRC Data Security Law provides for data security and privacy obligations on entities and individuals carrying out data activities, introduces a data classification and hierarchical protection system based on the importance of data in economic and social development, as well as the degree of harm it will cause to national security, public interests, or legitimate rights and interests of individuals or organizations when such data is tampered with, destroyed, leaked, or illegally acquired or used, provides for a national security review procedure for those data activities which may affect national security and imposes export restrictions on certain data and information. In addition, recently, certain PRC regulatory authorities issued Opinions on Intensifying Crack Down on Illegal Securities Activities, which were available to the public on July 6, 2021 and further emphasized to strengthen the cross-board regulatory collaboration, to improve relevant laws and regulations on data security, cross-border data transmission, and confidential information management, and provided that efforts will be made to revise the regulations on strengthening the confidentiality and file management relating to the offering and listing of securities overseas, to implement the responsibility on information security of overseas listed companies, and to strengthen the standardized management of cross-border information provision mechanisms and procedures. However, as such law or opinions were newly issued, and there are no any further explanations or detailed rules or regulations, and there are still uncertainties regarding the interpretation and implementation of such law or opinions. And new laws, regulations or rules promulgated in future may impose additional requirements on us. As an open platform, we have access to certain personal and other sensitive data provided by our users and financial service providers. We also make certain personal information provided by users or third-party data providers available to financial service providers using our big data and system-based risk management services with user consent. Concerns about the collection, use, disclosure or security of personal information or other privacy-related matters, even if unfounded, could damage our reputation, cause us to lose users and customers and adversely affect our operating results. While we strive to comply with applicable data protection laws and regulations, as well as our own posted privacy policies and other obligations we may have with respect to privacy and data protection, the failure or perceived failure to comply may result, and in some cases has resulted, in inquiries and other proceedings or actions against us by government agencies or others, as well as negative publicity and damage to our reputation and brand, each of which could cause us to lose users and customers, which could have an adverse effect on our business. Any systems failure or compromise of our security that results in the unauthorized access to or release of our users' or customers' data could significantly limit the adoption of our products and services, as well as harm our reputation and brand and, therefore, our business. We strictly limit third-party developers' unauthorized access to user privacy and user data, and we expend significant resources on technology and product development to protect against leakage of user information and other security breaches. Nonetheless, given its great commercial value, our user data may still be misused by third parties, which could expose us to legal and regulatory risks and seriously harm our business. There are numerous laws regarding privacy and the storing, sharing, use, disclosure and protection of personally identifiable information and data. Specifically, personally identifiable and other confidential information is increasingly subject to legislation and regulations in numerous domestic and international jurisdictions. PRC governmental authorities have enacted a series of laws and regulations relating to the protection of privacy and personal information, under which internet service providers and other network operators are required to clearly indicate the purposes, methods and scope of any information collection and usage, to obtain appropriate user consent and to establish user information protection systems with appropriate remedial measures. For example, on March 12, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly promulgated the Provisions on the Scope of Necessary Personal Information Required for Common Types of Mobile Internet Applications, which became effective on May 1, 2021, clarifying the scope of necessary information required for certain common mobile apps and stating that mobile apps operators may not deny users' access to basic functions and services when the users opt out of the collection of unnecessary personal information. In addition, on August 20, 2021, the SCNPC promulgated the PRC Personal Information Protection Law, which will take effect from November 1, 2021. Pursuant to the PRC Personal Information Protection Law, "personal information" refers to the information related to an identified or identifiable individual recorded electronically or by other means, excluding the anonymized information, and processing of personal information includes among others, the collection, storage, use, handling, transmission, provision, disclosure, deletion of personal information. In addition to processing of personal information within the PRC, the PRC Personal Information Protection Law also applies to the process of personal information outside the PRC under any of the following circumstances: (i) where the purpose is to provide products or services to individuals within the PRC; (ii) when analyzing or assessing the activities of domestic individuals; or (iii) other circumstances as stipulated by laws and administrative regulations. This law sets forth both general rules for processing the personal information and specific rules for processing the personal information under certain specific circumstance, including the process of sensitive personal information and cross-border provision of personal information. As the PRC Personal Information Protection Law is newly issued, and there are no further explanations or detailed rules or regulations with respect to its interpretation and implementation, we still face uncertainties how this law may be interpreted or implemented in ways that will negatively affect us. Furthermore, several PRC governmental authorities have taken a series of strict examinations and inspections against illegal activities of collecting or using data and personal information, and it was reported that numerous mobile applications or website operators were ordered to rectify their illegal activities, or imposed with warnings, fines or other administrative penalties, or even became subjects of criminal investigations. In July 2019, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology identified us as one of many internet companies that had a few instances of improper collection or use of personal information either without prior user consent or with misleading or unclear user consent, and required us to rectify accordingly. We have taken necessary measures to rectify and improve our personal information and data protection system. We have developed a comprehensive user information protection policy, in which we lay out in detail the types of personal information we collect from users and the purposes, methods and scope of our collection, usage and handling of user personal information. We are continuously updating our policy as the purposes, methods and scope of our collection and handling of user personal information changes. Our user information protection policy and user agreement are displayed permanently in fixed locations on our mobile apps and websites so as to allow users to conveniently access and search such policies and agreements related to the collection and usage of their personal information on our app and website. We have also added pop-up notifications in our mobile app and website prompting our users to carefully read and agree to our user information protection policy whenever the user installs, opens up for the first time or registers an account on our mobile app or website. We are unable to collect any personal information from users unless the user voluntarily agrees to our user agreement and user information protection policy by checking the relevant boxes on our app or website. For certain functions of our platform where the collection and usage of additional personal information is necessary, we will clearly prompt the users as to the purposes, methods and scope of the collection and usage of the additional personal information. The user is then free to agree to or reject such collection and usage of additional personal information. Rejection of such collection and usage of additional personal information will not impact the use of other unrelated functionalities on our platform. The regulatory framework for cybersecurity, information security, privacy and data protection in China and worldwide is currently evolving and is likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. Operators like us are and may continue to be subject to more comprehensive and stricter supervision by the competent governmental authorities on such issues, especially given our collection and use of personal information by users or third-party data providers with user consent under our big data and system-based risk management service business. We cannot assure you that our existing personal information and data protection system and technical measures will be considered sufficient under applicable laws and regulations. We could be adversely affected if legislation or regulations in China are expanded to require changes in business practices or privacy policies, or if the PRC governmental authorities interpret or implement their legislation or regulations in ways that negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition to laws, regulations and other applicable rules regarding cybersecurity, information security, privacy and data protection, industry groups or other private parties may propose new and different privacy standards. Because the interpretation and application of laws and privacy standards regarding cybersecurity, information security, privacy and data protection are still uncertain, it is possible that these laws or privacy standards may be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with our practices. Any inability to adequately address privacy concerns, even if unfounded, or to comply with applicable laws, regulations and standards regarding cybersecurity, information security, privacy and data protection, could result in additional cost and liability for us, damage our reputation, inhibit the use of our platform and harm our business.

We may, from time to time, distribute rights to our shareholders, including rights to acquire securities. Under the deposit agreement, the depositary will not distribute rights to holders of ADSs unless the distribution and sale of rights and the securities to which these rights relate are either exempt from registration under the Securities Act with respect to all holders of ADSs or are registered under the provisions of the Securities Act. The depositary may, but is not required to, attempt to sell these undistributed rights to third parties, and may allow the rights to lapse. We may be unable to establish an exemption from registration under the Securities Act, and we are under no obligation to file a registration statement with respect to these rights or underlying securities or to endeavor to have a registration statement declared effective. Accordingly, holders of ADSs may be unable to participate in our rights offerings and may experience dilution of their holdings as a result.

The majority of user traffic to our platform is generated from third-party channels, rather than from direct access to our mobile apps or website. We also increasingly leverage social network and social media platform as an effective and efficient tool for user acquisition. We introduced a cooperation system called the Social Media and Partner Program in the third quarter of 2018, through which our users may register as our business partners to recommend the financial products on our platform to their social contacts through social network and social media platform, and are rewarded according to our incentive policies. The Social Media and Partner Program has been very effective in user acquisition since its inception, particularly in the recommendation of credit card products on our platform to new users. In 2020, approximately 66% of the credit card volume on our platform were from user acquired through recommendation by our business partners to their social contacts under the Social Media and Partner Program. Despite the initial success of the Social Media and Partner Program, we may not be able to continue to promote awareness of our brand and achieve widespread acceptance of our business model to increase direct access to our platform. We have incurred significant expenses on and devoted considerable resources to branding and marketing activities and user traffic acquisition, and we may continue to do so in the future. Our ability to convert user traffic to user base and retain that user base depends on users' satisfaction with the quantity and quality of financial products offered by financial service providers and trust in the content on our platform. If we fail to meet these challenges, our business, financial performance and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

The acceptance and popularity of our platform is premised on the reliability of the financial products and information on our platform. We rely on our financial service providers for the authenticity of their financial products and the comprehensiveness, accuracy and timeliness of the related financial information. While the products and information from our financial service providers have been generally reliable, there can be no assurance that the reliability can be maintained in the future. If our financial service providers or their agents provide inauthentic financial products or incomplete, misleading, inaccurate or fraudulent information, we may lose the trust of existing and prospective users. In addition, if our users purchase financial products that they discover on our platform and they suffer losses, they may blame us and attempt to hold us responsible for their losses. Our reputation could be harmed and we could experience reduced user traffic to our platform, which would adversely affect our business and financial performance.

We believe our future success depends on our continued ability to attract, develop, motivate and retain qualified and skilled employees. Competition for highly skilled sales and marketing, technical, risk management and financial personnel is extremely intense in China. We may not be able to hire and retain these personnel at compensation levels consistent with our existing compensation and salary structure. Some of the companies with which we compete for experienced employees have greater resources than we have and may be able to offer more attractive terms of employment. In addition, we invest significant time and resources in training our employees, which increases their value to competitors who may seek to recruit them. If we fail to retain our employees, we could incur significant expenses in hiring and training new employees, and our ability to serve users and financial service providers could diminish, resulting in a material adverse effect to our business.

Short selling is the practice of selling securities that the seller does not own but rather has borrowed from a third party with the intention of buying identical securities back at a later date to return to the lender. The short seller hopes to profit from a decline in the value of the securities between the sale of the borrowed securities and the purchase of the replacement shares, as the short seller expects to pay less in that purchase than it received in the sale. As it is in the short seller's interest for the price of the security to decline, many short sellers publish, or arrange for the publication of, negative opinions regarding the relevant issuer and its business prospects in order to create negative market momentum and generate profits for themselves after selling a security short. These short attacks have, in the past, led to selling of shares in the market. Public companies listed in the United States that have a substantial majority of their operations in China have been the subject of short selling. Much of the scrutiny and negative publicity has centered on allegations of a lack of effective internal control over financial reporting resulting in financial and accounting irregularities and mistakes, inadequate corporate governance policies or a lack of adherence thereto and, in many cases, allegations of fraud. As a result, many of these companies are now conducting internal and external investigations into the allegations and, in the interim, are subject to shareholder lawsuits and/or SEC enforcement actions. We may be the subject of unfavorable allegations made by short sellers in the future. Any such allegations may be followed by periods of instability in the market price of our common shares and ADSs and negative publicity. If and when we become the subject of any unfavorable allegations, whether such allegations are proven to be true or untrue, we could have to expend a significant amount of resources to investigate such allegations and/or defend ourselves. While we would strongly defend against any such short seller attacks, we may be constrained in the manner in which we can proceed against the relevant short seller by principles of freedom of speech, applicable federal or state law or issues of commercial confidentiality. Such a situation could be costly and time-consuming and could distract our management from growing our business. Even if such allegations are ultimately proven to be groundless, allegations against us could severely impact our business operations and shareholders' equity, and the value of any investment in our ADSs could be greatly reduced or rendered worthless.

The insurance industry in China is still in an early stage of development, and insurance companies in China currently offer limited business-related insurance products. We do not maintain business interruption insurance or general third-party liability insurance, nor do we maintain property insurance or product liability insurance. We consider our insurance coverage to be reasonable in light of the nature of our business and the insurance products that are available in China and in line with the practices of other companies in the same industry of similar size in China, but we cannot assure you that our insurance coverage is sufficient to prevent us from any loss or that we will be able to successfully claim our losses under our current insurance policies on a timely basis, or at all. If we incur any loss that is not covered by our insurance policies, or the compensated amount is significantly less than our actual loss, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

Changes in the condition of China's credit markets generally impact the demand and supply of financial products, which in turn will affect user traffic and user activity on our platform and the demand for our services and solutions by financial service providers. The range, pricing and terms of financial products available in the market partly result from competition among financial service providers. Because the financial products on our platform are provided by third parties, we are not able to ensure they meet users' needs and preferences at any given time. In a rising interest rate environment, our users may seek funding through other means. In a declining interest rate environment, borrowers may choose to refinance their loans with lower-priced financial products, which may not be available on our platform. There can be no assurance that our financial service providers can respond to fluctuations in interest rates in a timely manner by adjusting the financial product listings on our platform. A credit crisis or prolonged downturn in the credit markets could severely impact our operating environment. A credit crisis or prolonged downturn in the credit markets might cause tightening in credit guidelines, limited liquidity, deterioration in credit performance and increased foreclosure activities. Since we predominantly generate our revenues from fees charged for our sales and marketing services and not on the basis of outstanding loan amounts, a decrease in transaction volumes could cause a material decline in our revenues, even though we do not bear credit risk in the event of borrower default. Moreover, a financial and credit crisis may be coupled with or trigger a downturn in the macroeconomic environment, which could cause a general decrease in lending activity over a longer period of time. If a credit crisis were to occur, particularly in China's credit markets, our business, financial performance and prospects could be materially and adversely affected.

The internet, and particularly the mobile internet, has gained increased popularity in China as a platform for financial products and content in recent years. However, certain lenders, especially traditional financial institutions, and many users have limited experience in handling financial products and content online, and some users may have reservations about using online platforms. For example, users may not find online content to be reliable sources of financial product information. Some financial service providers may not believe online platforms are secure for risk assessment and credit management. Others may not find online platforms effective when promoting and providing their products and services, especially to targeted customers in lower-tier cities or rural areas. If we fail to educate users and financial service providers about the value of our platform and our services and solutions, our growth will be limited and our business, financial performance and prospects may be materially and adversely affected. The further acceptance of the internet and particularly the mobile internet as an effective and efficient platform for financial products and content is also affected by factors beyond our control, including negative publicity around online and mobile consumer finance and restrictive regulatory measures taken by the PRC government. If online and mobile networks do not achieve adequate acceptance in the market, our growth prospects, results of operations and financial condition could be harmed.

We may not be able to match users with suitable financial products due to various reasons. Our search and recommendation engine may fail to function properly. The data provided to us by our users, financial service providers and third-party data partners may not be accurate or up to date. If users are recommended financial products but cannot ultimately obtain approval from financial service providers, they may consider our platform to be ineffective at matching. At the same time, financial service providers may be dissatisfied with us for not effectively helping them acquire users. After a user gets a financial product, the user may become dissatisfied with the terms and conditions of the financial product or the services provided by the financial service provider, or the financial service provider may have difficulty collecting repayments from the user. Both the user and financial service provider may associate their dissatisfaction and subsequent difficulties with our platform as the transaction was initiated on our platform. Users may consequently be reluctant to continue to use our platform and financial service providers may be hesitant to continue to partner with us. As a result, our business, reputation, financial performance and prospects will be materially and adversely affected.

Substantially all of our assets and operations are located in China. Accordingly, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be influenced to a significant degree by political, economic and social conditions in China generally and by continued economic growth in China as a whole. The PRC economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including the level of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. Although the PRC government has implemented measures emphasizing the utilization of market forces for economic reform, the reduction of state ownership of productive assets, and the establishment of improved corporate governance in business enterprises, a substantial portion of productive assets in China is still owned by the government. In addition, the PRC government continues to play a significant role in regulating industry development by imposing industrial policies. The PRC government also exercises significant control over China's economic growth through allocating resources, controlling payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy, and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies. While the Chinese economy has experienced significant growth over the past decades, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy. The Chinese government has implemented various measures to encourage economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. Some of these measures may benefit the overall Chinese economy, but may have a negative effect on us. For example, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations.

The PRC government imposes controls on the convertibility of Renminbi into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China. Under existing PRC foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, such as profit distributions and trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from or registration with appropriate governmental authorities is required where Renminbi is to be converted into foreign currency and remitted out of China to pay capital expenses such as the repayment of loans denominated in foreign currencies. See "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulation-Regulations Related to Foreign Exchange-Regulation on Foreign Currency Exchange." Since 2016, the PRC government has tightened its foreign exchange policies again and stepped up scrutiny of major outbound capital movement. More restrictions and a substantial vetting process have been put in place by SAFE to regulate cross-border transactions falling under the capital account. The PRC government may also restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions, at its discretion. We receive substantially all of our revenues in RMB. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currencies to satisfy our foreign currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders, including holders of our ADSs.