PART I

Item 1. Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers

Not applicable for annual reports on Form 20-F.applicable.

Item 2. Offer Statistics and Expected Timetable

Not applicable for annual reports on Form 20-F.applicable.

Item 3. Key Information

Holding Company Structure

The following table presents

ReTo Eco-Solutions, Inc. (“ReTo”, collectively with its consolidated subsidiaries, the selected consolidated financial information for our company. The selected consolidated statements“Company,” “we,” “us”, “our” or similar terminology) is a business company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) with no material operations of operations data for the three years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, and the selected consolidated balance sheets data as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, which are included in this annual report beginning on page F-1. Our historical results do not necessarily indicate results expected for any future periods. The selected consolidated financial data should be read in conjunction with, and are qualified in their entirety by reference to, our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes and “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” below. Our audited consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with US GAAP.

Statement of operations data:

Balance sheet data:

Exchange Rate Information

its own. We conduct substantially all of our operations through our subsidiaries established in the People’s Republic of China (the “PRC” or “China”). Our equity structure is a direct holding structure, that is, ReTo, the BVI entity listed in the U.S., controls Beijing REIT and other PRC operating entities through REIT Holdings. See “Item 4. Information on the Company - A. History and development of the company” For more details.

We face various risks and uncertainties relating to doing business in China. Our business operations are primarily conducted in China, and maintain the financial records of China Operating Companies in RMB, their functional currency. However, we use the U.S. dollar as our reporting currency; therefore, periodic reports made to shareholders will include current period amounts translated into U.S. dollars using the then-current exchange rates. Our financial statements have been translated into U.S. dollars in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 830-10, “Foreign Currency Matters.” We have translated our asset and liability accounts using the exchange rate in effect at the balance sheet date. We translated our statements of operations using the average exchange rate for the period. We reported the resulting translation adjustments under other comprehensive income (loss). The consolidated balance sheet amounts, with the exception of equity at December 31, 2020 and 2019 were translated at RMB6.5250  to $1.000 and RMB 6.9618 to $1.00, respectively. The equity accounts were stated at their historical rate. The average translation rates applied to consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income and cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 were RMB 6.9042, RMB 6.9081 and RMB 6.6090 to $1.00, respectively.

We make no representation that any RMB or U.S. dollar amounts could have been, or could be, converted into U.S. dollars or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate, or at all. The Chinese government imposes control over its foreign currency reserves in part through direct regulation of the conversion of RMB into foreign exchange and through restrictions on foreign trade.

Not applicable for annual reports on Form 20-F.

Not applicable for annual reports on Form 20-F.

Risks Related to Our Business

Wage increases in China may prevent us from sustaining our competitive advantage and could reduce our profit margins.

Labor costs in China have increased with China’s economic development. Rising inflation in China is also putting pressure on wages. Wage costs for our employees form a significant part of our costs. For instance, for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, our compensation and benefit costs for our employees were approximately $3.4 million and $3.2 million, respectively. In addition, we are required by Chinese laws and regulations to pay various statutory employee benefits, including pensions, housing funds, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance to designated governmental agencies for the benefit of our employees. We expect that our labor costs, including wages and employee benefits, will continue to increase, particularly as we seek to expand our operations. In addition, the future issuance of equity-based compensation to our professional staff and other employees would also result in additional stock dilution for our shareholders. Unless we are able to pass on these increased labor costs to our customers by increasing prices for our products and projects, our profitability and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, the Chinese government has promulgated new laws and regulations to enhance labor protections in recent years, such as the Labor Contract Law and the Social Insurance Law. As the interpretation and implementation of these new laws and regulations are still evolving, our employment practice may not at all times be deemed in compliance with the new laws and regulations. If we are subject to penalties or incur significant liabilities in connectioncomplex and evolving PRC laws and regulations. For example, we face risks associated with labor disputes or investigation, our businessregulatory approvals on offshore offerings, anti-monopoly regulatory actions, and profitability may be adversely affected.

We are susceptible to general economic conditions, natural catastrophic eventsoversight on cybersecurity and public health crises, and a potential downturn indata privacy, as well as the construction materials market could adversely affect our operating results in the near future.

Our business is subject to the impactlack of natural catastrophic events, such as earthquakes, or floods, public health crisis, such as disease outbreaks, epidemics, or pandemics in China, and all these could result in a decrease or sharp downturn of economies, including our markets and business locations in the current and future periods. The outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in China resulted in increased travel restrictions, and shutdown of businesses, which may cause slower recovery of the China economy. We may experience impact from quarantines, market downturns and changes in customer behavior related to pandemic fears and impactinspection on our workforce ifauditors by the virus continues to spread. COVID-19 could cause delaysPublic Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the inability to deliver our products and services on a timely basis. In addition, one or more of our customers, partners, service providers or suppliersPCAOB, which may experience financial distress, delayed or defaults on payment, file for bankruptcy protection, sharp diminishing of business, or suffer disruptions in their business due to the outbreak. The extent to which the coronavirus impacts our results will depend on future developments and reactions in China, which are highly uncertain and will include emerging information concerning the severity of the coronavirus and the actions taken by governments and private businesses to attempt to contain the coronavirus. It is likely to result in a potential material adverse impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition in the short run if the situation gets worse in China. Wider-spread COVID-19 in China and globally could prolong the deterioration in economic conditions and could cause decreases in or delays in spending and reduce and/or negatively impact our short-term ability to grow our revenues. Any decreased collectability of accounts receivable, bankruptcy of small and medium businesses, or early termination of agreements due to deterioration in economic conditions could negatively impact our results of operations.

Our revenue will decrease if the industries in which our customers operate experience a protracted slowdown.

Our customers generally operate in the construction industry. Therefore, we are subject to general changes in economic conditions impacting this industry segment of the economy. If the construction industry does not grow or if there is a contraction in this industry, demand for our business would decrease. Demand for our business is typically affected by a number of overarching economic factors, including interest rates, environmental laws and regulations, the availability and magnitude of private and governmental investment in infrastructure projects and the health of the overall economy. If there is a decline in economic activity in China or the other markets in which we operate, or there is a protracted slowdown in industries upon which we rely for our sales, demand for our projects and products and our revenue would likewise decrease, which could have a materially adverse effect on our business.

Any decline in the availability or increase in the cost of raw materials could materially impact our earnings.

Our construction material products, manufacturing equipment and projects depend heavily on the ready availability of various raw materials. The availability of raw materials may decline, and their prices may fluctuate greatly. If our suppliers are unable or unwilling to provide us with raw materials on terms favorable to us, we may be unable to produce certain products, equipment or complete projects. The inability to produce certain products or projects for customers could result in a decrease in profit and damage to our corporate reputation. In the event our raw material costs increase, we may not be able to pass these higher costs on to our customers in full or at all.

We rely on a limited number of vendors, and the loss of any significant vendor could harm our business, and the loss of any one of such vendors could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We consider our major vendors to be those vendors that accounted for more than 10% of overall purchases in any given fiscal period. For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, the Company purchased approximately 43%, 25% and 28% of its raw materials from one major supplier, respectively. We have not entered into long-term contracts with all of our significant vendors and instead rely on individual contracts with such vendors. Although we believe that we can locate replacement vendors readily on the market for prevailing prices, any difficulty in replacing a vendor on terms acceptable to us could negatively affect our company’s performance to the extent it results in higher prices or a slower supply chain.

We face substantial inventory risk, which if such risk is not addressed could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We must order materials for our products and projects and build inventory in advance of production. We typically acquire materials through a combination of purchase orders, supplier contracts and open orders, in each case based on projected demand.

As of December 31, 2020, our inventory from continuing operations was $730,207. Inventory turnover associated with our continuing operations for the fiscal 2020 was 34 days. As our markets are competitive and subject to rapid technology and price changes, there is a risk that we will forecast incorrectly and order or produce incorrect amounts of products or not fully utilize firm purchase commitments. If we were unsuccessful in accurately quantifying appropriate levels of inventory, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

Any disruption in the supply chain of raw materials and our products could adversely impact our ability to produceconduct certain businesses, accept foreign investments, or list and deliver products, which could haveconduct offerings on a material adverse effect on our business.

In order to optimize our product manufacturing, we must manage our supply chain for raw materials and delivery of our products. Supply chain fragmentation and local protectionism within China further increase supply chain disruption risks. Local administrative bodies and physical infrastructure built to protect local interests may pose transportation challenges for raw material transportation as well as product delivery. In addition, profitability and volume could be negatively impacted by limitations inherent within the supply chain, including competitive, governmental, legal, natural disasters, andUnited States or other events that could impact both supply and price. Any of these occurrences could cause significant disruptions to our supply chain, manufacturing capability and distribution system that could adversely impact our ability to produce and deliver products. If we are unsuccessful in maintaining efficient operation of our supply chain, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

We do not maintain a reserve for warranty or defective products and installation claims. Our costs could increase if we experience a significant number of claims, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We generally obtain customers’ acceptance when we deliver products, equipment or projects. In practice, we allow our customers to reserve approximately 5-20% of the agreed purchase or installation price as a security retention for a period of one or two years after we deliver or implement a solution. We consider this one or two years term to be a warranty period for our products or projects sold. Historically, we have not experienced significant customer complaints concerning our products or projects, and none of our customers have claimed damages for any loss incurred due to quality problems. In addition to our one to two years reserve, China’s Product Quality Law generally allows customers two years to seek compensation for damages caused by product quality deficiencies in cases in which a product lacks an expiration period.

We expect our customer support teams and our quality assurance and manufacturing monitoring procedures to continue to keep claims at a level that does not support a need for a financial reserve. However, if we experience significant increases in claims or customers’ failure to pay the final 5-20% of a purchase/installation price as a result of quality concerns, our financial results could be adversely affected.

We face certainforeign exchange. These risks in collecting our accounts receivable, the failure to collect could have a material adverse effect on our business.

At the end of December 31, 2020 and 2019, our net accounts receivable associated with our continuing operations were $3,422,578 (including accounts receivable from third party customers of $3,220,504 and accounts receivable from related party customers of approximately $202,074) and $11,721,476 (including accounts receivable from third party customers of $11,252,002 and accounts receivable from related party customers of approximately $469,474), respectively. These amounts represented 35% of our total revenues from continuing operations in 2020 and 40% of our total revenues from continuing operations in 2019. For the year ended December 31, 2020 our accounts receivable turnover associated with our continuing operations was 284 days, and 161 days for the same period in 2019.

Although we believe that we have developed a robust receivables management system and have not incurred a situation where an account receivable has become uncollectable, as our business continues to scale, we believe that our accounts receivable balance will continue to grow. This, in turn, increases our risks for bad debts and uncollectible receivables. To the extent we incur additional bad debts and/or uncollectible receivables, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

Our return on investment in client projects may be different from our projections.

Our return on investment in client projects will take some time to materialize. At the initial stages of project investment and construction, the depreciation of newly added materials and fixed assets will negatively affect our operating results. In addition, the projects may be subject to changes in market conditions during the installation and implementation phases. Changes in industry policy, the progress of the projects, project management, raw materials supply, market conditions and other variables may affect the profitability and the time in which we profit on projects, which may be different from our initial forecast, thus affecting the actual return on investment of the projects.

The sale of our eco-friendly construction materials are subject to geographic market risks, which could adversely affect our revenues and profitability.

Currently, all of our eco-friendly construction materials are sold in China. Accordingly, we are subject to risks related to the economy of this geographic market. In addition to economic conditions, the geographic concentration suggests that regional specific legislation, taxes and disasters such as earthquakes could disproportionately affect us and our financial performance. A downturn in the demand for eco-friendly construction materials or economic conditions in Hainan Province could result in a material declineadverse change in our business, financial conditionoperations and results of operation.

The reportthe value of our independent registered public accounting firm on our financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 includes an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt aboutCommon Shares, significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to continue as a going concern, and if our business is unable to continue it is likelyoffer securities to investors, will lose all of their investment.

As discussed in Note 3 toor cause the consolidated financial statements to this Annual Report, the Company has suffered significant losses from operations and has a significant decrease in working capital that raises substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Our auditor, Friedman LLP, has indicated in their report on the Company’s financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 that there is “substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern”. A “going concern” opinion could impair our ability to finance our operations through the sale of equity, incurring debt, or other financing alternatives.

Management’s plan to alleviate the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern include working to improve the Company’s liquidity and capital sources mainly through cash flow from its operations, renewal of bank borrowings and borrowing from related parties. In order to fully implement its business plan and sustain continued growth, the Company may also seek equity financing from outside investors. At the present time, however, the Company does not have commitments of funds from any potential investors. There can be no assurance that additional financing, if required, would be available on favorable terms or at all and/or that these plans and arrangements will be sufficient to fund the Company’s ongoing capital expenditures, working capital, and other requirements.  If we are unable to achieve these goals, our business will be jeopardized and we may not be able to continue. If we ceased operations, it is likely that all of our investors will lose their investment. 

We cannot assure you that our growth strategy will be successful, which may result in a negative impact on our growth, financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.

We intend to grow by expanding our business, increasing market penetration of our existing products, developing new products and increasing our targeting of domestic and international markets. However, many obstacles to this expansion exist, including increased competition from similar businesses, our ability to improve our products and product mix to realize the benefits of our research and development efforts, unexpected costs and costs associated with marketing efforts. As such, we cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully overcome these potential challenges and establish our business in additional markets. Our inability to implement this growth strategy successfully may have a negative impact on our growth, future financial condition, and results of operations or cash flows.

If we fail to protect our intellectual property rights, it could harm our business and competitive position.

We own 69 patents (seven of which are owned jointly with Luoyang Water-Conservancy Surveying & Design Co., Ltd. (“Luoyang”), an independent third party), and 8 software copyrights in China covering our construction material products and manufacturing equipment, and we rely on a combination of patent, trademark and trade secret laws and non-disclosure agreements and other methods to protect our intellectual property rights.

The process of seeking patent protection on future patents can be lengthy and expensive, our patent applications may fail to result in patents being issued, and our existing and future patents may be insufficient to provide us with meaningful protection or commercial advantage. Our patents and patent applications may also be challenged, invalidated or circumvented.

Implementation of Chinese intellectual property-related laws has historically been lacking, primarily because of ambiguities in Chinese laws and enforcement difficulties. Accordingly, intellectual property rights and confidentiality protections in China may not be as effective as in the United States or other western countries. Furthermore, policing unauthorized use of proprietary technology is difficult and expensive, and we may need to resort to litigation to enforce or defend patents issued to us or to determine the enforceability, scope and validity of our proprietary rights or those of others. Such litigation and an adverse determination in any such litigation, if any, could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention, which could harm our business and competitive position.

We may be exposed to intellectual property infringement and other claims by third parties which, if successful, could disrupt our business and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our success depends, in large part, on our ability to use and develop our technology and know-how without infringing third party intellectual property rights. We face a high risk of being the subject of claims for intellectual property infringement, invalidity or indemnification relating to other parties’ proprietary rights because we sell our products and manufacturing equipment internationally and litigation is becoming more common in China. Our current or potential competitors, many of which have substantial resources and have made substantial investments in competing technologies, may have or may obtain patents that will prevent, limit or interfere with our ability to make, use or sell our branded products in either China or other countries, including the United States and other countries in Asia. In addition, the defense of intellectual property suits, including patent infringement suits, and related legal and administrative proceedings can be costly, time consuming and may significantly divert the efforts and resources of our technical and management personnel. Furthermore, an adverse determination in any such litigation or proceedings to which we may become a party could cause us to:

Each of these events could effectively prevent us from pursuing some or all of our business and result in our customers or potential customers deferring or limiting their purchase or use of our branded products, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Confidentiality agreements with employees and third parties may not prevent unauthorized disclosure of proprietary information and trade secrets.

In addition to patents, we rely on confidentiality agreements to protect our technical know-how and other proprietary information. In addition, our officers and each of our main technical and management employees have signed a confidentiality agreement. Nevertheless, there can be no guarantee that an employee or a third party will not make an unauthorized disclosure of our proprietary confidential information. This might happen intentionally or inadvertently. It is possible that a competitor will make usevalue of such information, and that our competitive position will be compromised, in spite of any legal action we might take against persons making such unauthorized disclosures.

The use of unqualified individual subcontractors may result in substantial liability.

We, REIT Construction and REIT Eco Engineering sometimes subcontract portions of our projectssecurities to third parties. According to Construction Law and Qualification Standard for Labor Subcontracting in Construction Business of China, individual contractors are not insignificantly decline. For a position to obtain any qualification of labor subcontracting. Accordingly, contracts subcontracted out by REIT Construction and REIT Eco Engineering to individual contractors may be declared void and unenforceable by applicable courts. Article 29 of the Construction Law requires that “the overall contractors and subcontractors shall bear joint responsibilities to project owners for the subcontracted projects”. It is possible that we may subcontract projects to individuals or parties without required qualifications. If the construction completed by unqualified individual subcontractors does not meet required quality standards and an accident occurs, we may jointly bear the consequences pursuant to the Article 67 of the Construction Law. Also, according to Article 54 of the Regulation on the Quality Management of Construction Projects, the liabilities for the consequences could be indemnifying the damages and paying a penalty ranging from 500,000 RMB (approximately $72,000) up to 1.0 million RMB. (approximately $144,000).

If we experience a significant disruption in, or a breach in security of, our information technology systems or if we fail to implement, manage or integrate new systems, software and technologies successfully, it could harm our business.

Our information technology (“IT”) systems are an integral part of our business. We depend on our IT systems to process transactions, manage logistics, keep financial records, prepare our financial reporting and operate other critical functions. Security breaches, cyber-attacks or other serious disruptions of our IT systems can create systemic disruptions, shutdowns or unauthorized disclosure of confidential information. If we are unable to prevent or adequately respond to such breaches, attacks or other disruptions, our operations could be adversely affected or we may suffer financial or reputational damage.

In addition, our ability to effectively implement our business plan in a rapidly evolving market requires effective planning, reporting and analytical processes and systems. We are improving and expect that we will need to continue to improve and further integrate our IT systems, reporting systems and operating procedures on an ongoing basis. If we fail to do so effectively, it could adversely affect our ability to achieve our objectives.

Product defects and unanticipated use or inadequate disclosure with respect to our products could adversely affect our business, reputation and financial performance.

Manufacturing or design defects (including in products or components that we source from third parties), unanticipated use of, or inadequate disclosuredetailed description of risks relating to doing business in China, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China.”

The PRC government’s significant authority in regulating our operations and its oversight and control over offerings conducted overseas by, and foreign investment in, China-based issuers could significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to investors. Implementation of industry-wide regulations in this nature may cause the usevalue of products or equipment that we make and sell may leadsuch securities to personal injury, death or property damage. These events could leadsignificantly decline. For more details, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to recalls or alerts relating to our products, resultDoing Business in the removal of a product or equipment from the market or result in product liability claims being brought against us. Product and equipment recalls, removals and liability claims can lead toChina— The PRC government’s significant costs, as well as negative publicity and damage to our reputation that could reduce demand for our products and equipment.

Outstanding bank loans may reduce our available funds.

We had approximately $15.9 million in bank loans loan outstanding as of December 31, 2020 (including $6.7 million short-term bank loans, $2.9 million current portion of long-term bank loans and $6.3 million long-term bank loans). The loans are held at multiple banks, and all of the debt is guaranteed by third-party guaranty companies and certain company officers. There can be no guarantee that we will be able to pay all amounts when due or refinance the amounts on terms that are acceptable to us or at all. If we are unable to make our payments when due or to refinance such amounts, our property could be foreclosed andoversight over our business operation could be negatively affected.

We guaranteed related party loans, which may subject us to losses should we have to make our commitments under the guaranty, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flow and per share trading price of our securities.

In addition, on March 17, 2017, REIT Changjiang entered into a guarantee agreement to guarantee the payment obligations of the Company’s related party, Changjiang Zhongrong Hengde Environmental Protection Co., Ltd., to Changjiang Li Autonomous County Rural Credit Cooperatives. The guaranteed principal creditor’s right is approximately $3.8 million (RMB 25,000,000). The guarantee was still effective as of December 31, 2020. Should we have to make our commitments under this guaranty, it may subject us to losses, which may result in a material adverse effect onchange in our financial condition, results of operations cash flow and per share trading pricethe value of our securities.Common Shares.”

A financial intermediary may have acquired investment fundsRisks and uncertainties arising from investors to investthe legal system in our Company’s business before reaching a final mutual agreement with us to obtain such investments, which may subject us to on-going or future litigation, whichChina, including risks and uncertainties regarding the enforcement of laws and quickly evolving rules and regulations in China, could haveresult in a material adverse effect onchange in our financial condition.

In 2018 a financial intermediaryoperations and REIT Xinyi began negotiations towards a potential cooperation where the financial intermediary would introduce potential investorsvalue of our Common Shares. For more details, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to facilitate investmentDoing Business in REIT Xinyi’s business. In December 2018, an investor invested 1,000,000 RMB (approximately $0.15 million) in REIT Xinyi through this financial intermediary. REIT Xinyi rejected this investmentChina— There are uncertainties regarding the interpretation and returned the total investment funds it received to the investorenforcement of PRC laws, rules and informed the financial intermediary to cease facilitating investments from other investors. In addition, despite there not being a final mutual agreementregulations.”

Cash and Other Assets Transfers between the parties, it appears the financial intermediary may have acquired investment fundsHolding Company and Its Subsidiaries

As a result of ReTo’s initial public offering (“IPO”) which closed in November 2017, ReTo received net proceeds of approximately $14.3 million. In March 2021, ReTo issued a convertible debenture to an institutional investor in the aggregateprincipal amount of 15,450,000 RMB (approximately $2.15 million) from certain investors,$2,300,000 and REIT Xinyi did not receive any funds from these investments.

Mr. Hengfang Li,received net proceeds of $1,476,915. In July 2021, ReTo issued a convertible debenture to an institutional investor in the Company’s CEO has agreed to assume full responsibility for liabilities, if any,principal amount of $2,500,000 and assumereceived net proceeds of $2,189,256. In March 2022, ReTo issued the creditor’s rights for these claims on behalfNote (as defined below) in the principal amount of the Company for any legal claims or lawsuits against the Company due to these investments.$3,105,000 and received net proceeds of $3,000,000. As of the date of this annual report, REIT Xinyi had been involved in one lawsuit as defendant regardingwith respect to the above investments with the claim amount of RMB 300,000 (approximately $44,000), the total amount of which was repaid by Hengfang Li in May 2020. Accordingly, at this time, the Company believes that any ultimate liability resultingnet proceeds from the outcome of such proceedings, if there are any, will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position or results of operations or liquidity.

However, in the event that Mr. Li personally fails to satisfy any losses related to the investments on our behalf, the Company may face the risk of being sued by the investors and repay related liabilities, which although is remote, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.

Our future growth depends on new products, environmental solutions and new technology innovation, and failure to invent and innovate could adversely impact our business prospects.

Our future growth depends in part on maintaining our competitive advantage with current products in new and existing markets, as well as our ability to develop new products, and technologies to serve such markets. To the extent that competitors develop competitive products, and technologies, or new products, or technologies that achieve higher customer satisfaction, our business prospects could be adversely impacted. In addition, regulatory approvals for new products, equipment or technologies may be required, and these approvals may not be obtained in a timely or cost-effective manner, which could adversely impact our business prospects.

Changes in demand for our products, equipment and business relationships with key customers and suppliers may negatively affect operating results.

To achieve our objectives, we must develop and sell products and equipment that are subject to the demands of our customers. This is dependent on many factors, including managing and maintaining relationships with key customers, responding to the rapid pace of technological change and obsolescence, which may require increased investment by us or result in greater pressure to commercialize developments rapidly or at prices that may not fully recover the associated investment,IPO and the effectconvertible debentures and the Note, ReTo had transferred an aggregate of approximately $18.5 million to Beijing REIT through REIT Holdings via shareholder loans and capital contribution. ReTo had kept the remaining approximately $0.4 million in its own account.

Other than the IPO, the convertible debentures and the Note, ReTo has not raised funds from investors so far, nor has transferred any other funds to its subsidiaries. To date, there have not been any dividends or other distributions from our Chinese subsidiaries to our companies located outside of mainland China, namely REIT Holdings and ReTo. ReTo, as a BVI holding company, may rely on demand resulting from customers’ research and development, capital expenditure plans and capacity utilization. If we are unable to keep up with our customers’ demands, our sales, earnings and operating results may be negatively affected. 

We may be unable to deliver our backlog on time, which could affect future sales and profitability and our relationships with customers.

Our ability to meet customer delivery schedules for backlog is dependent on a number of factors including sufficient manufacturing plant capacity, adequate supply channel access to raw materialsdividends and other inventory requireddistributions on equity paid by its PRC subsidiaries for production, an adequately trainedits cash and capable workforce, project engineering expertise for certain large projects and appropriate planning and scheduling of manufacturing resources. Many of the contracts we enter into with our customers require long manufacturing lead times. Failure to deliver in accordance with customer expectations could subject us to contract cancellations and financial penalties, and may result in damage to existing customer relationships and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. We cannot assure you that our backlog will result in revenue on a timely basis or at all, or that any cancelled contracts will be replaced.

Our operations are subject to various hazards that may cause personal injury or property damage and increase our operating costs, and which may exceed the coverage of our insurance.

There are inherent risks to our operations. Our workers are subject to the usual hazards associated with providing services on construction sites, while our plant personnel are subject to the hazards associated with moving and storing large quantities of heavy raw materials and finished products. Operating hazards can cause personal injury and loss of life, damage to or destruction of property, plant and equipment and environmental damage. Although we conduct training programs designed to reduce these risks, we cannot eliminate these risks. We rely on state mandated social insurance for work-related injuries of our employees. However, any claim that exceeds the scope of our insurance coverage, if successful and of sufficient magnitude, could result in the incurrence of substantial costs and the diversion of resources, which could have a material adverse effect on us. In addition, we do not have any business liability, disruption, litigation or property insurance coverage for our operations. Any uninsured occurrence of loss or damage to property, or litigation or business disruption may also materially and adversely affect our ability to operate.

We may incur material costs and losses as a result of claims our products do not meet regulatoryfinancing requirements, or contractual specifications.

Our operations involve providing products that must meet building code or other regulatory requirements and contractual specifications for durability, stress-level capacity, weight-bearing capacity and other characteristics. If we fail or are unable to provide products meeting these requirements and specifications, we may face economic penalties, including price adjustments, rejection of deliveries and/or termination of contracts, and our reputation could be damaged. If a significant product-related claim or claims are made and resolved against us in the future, such resolution may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our operations may incur substantial liabilities to comply with environmental laws and regulations.

Our construction materials manufacturing operations are subject to laws and regulations relating to the release or disposal of materials into the environment or otherwise relating to environmental protection. Our failure to have complied with the applicable laws may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the incurrence of investigatory or remedial obligations and the imposition of injunctive relief. Resolution of these matters may require considerable management time and expense. In addition, changes in environmental laws and regulations occur frequently and any changes that result in more stringent or costly manufacturing, storage, transport, disposal or cleanup requirements could require us to make significant expenditures to reach and maintain compliance and may otherwise have a material adverse effect on our industry in general and on our own results of operations, competitive position or financial condition.

We depend on our key personnel, and our business and growth prospects may be severely disrupted if we lose their services.

Our future success depends heavily upon the continued service of our key executives. In particular, we rely on the expertise and experience of Hengfang Li, our founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. We rely on his industry expertise and experience in our business operations, and in particular, his business vision, management skills, and working relationship with our employees, our other major shareholders, the regulatory authorities, and many of our clients. If he became unable or unwilling to continue in his present position, or if he joined a competitor or formed a competing company in violation of his employment agreement, we may not be able to replace him easily, our business may be significantly disrupted and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

We do not maintain key man life insurance on any of our senior management or key personnel. The loss of any one of them would have a material adverse effect on our business and operations. Competition for senior management and our other key personnel is intense and the pool of suitable candidates is limited. We may be unable to locate a suitable replacement for any senior management or key personnel that we lose. In addition, if any member of our senior management or key personnel joins a competitor or forms a competing company, they may compete with us for customers, business partners and other key professionals and staff members of our Company. Although each of our senior management and key personnel has signed a confidentiality and non-competition agreement in connection with his or her employment with us, we cannot assure that we will be able to successfully enforce these provisions in the event of a dispute between us and any member of our senior management or key personnel.

In addition, we compete for qualified personnel with other industry competitors, and we face competition in attracting skilled personnel and retaining the members of our senior management team. These personnel possess technical and business capabilities, including expertise relevant to the construction materials industry, which are difficult to replace. There is intense competition for experienced senior management with technical and industry expertise in the construction materials industry, and we may not be able to retain our key personnel. Intense competition for these personnel could cause our compensation costs to increase, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Our future success and ability to grow our business will depend in part on the continued service of these individuals and our ability to identify, hire and retain additional qualified personnel. If we are unable to attract and retain qualified employees, we may be unable to meet our business and financial goals.

We have limited business insurance coverage. Any future business liability, disruption or litigation we experience might divert management focus from our business and could significantly impact our financial results.

Availability of business insurance products and coverage in China is limited, and most such products are expensive in relation to the coverage offered. We have determined that the risks of disruption, cost of such insurance and the difficulties associated with acquiring such insurances on commercially reasonable terms make it impractical for us to maintain such insurances. As a result, we do not have any business liability, disruption or litigation insurance coverage for our operations in China. Accordingly, a business disruption, litigation or natural disaster may result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention from our business, which would have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We may require additional financing in the future and our operations could be curtailed if we are unable to obtain required additional financing when needed.

We may need to obtain additional debt or equity financing to fund future capital expenditures. While we do not anticipate seeking additional financing in the immediate future, any additional equity financing may result in dilution to the holders of our outstanding shares of capital stock. Additional debt financing may put us in situations that would restrict our freedom to operate our business, such as situations that:

We cannot guaranty that we will be able to obtain additional financing on terms that are acceptable to us, or any financing at all, and the failure to obtain sufficient financing could adversely affect our business operations.

Potential disruptions in the capital and credit markets may adversely affect our business, including the availability and cost of short-term funds for liquidity requirements, which could adversely affect our results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.

Potential changes in the global economy may affect the availability of business and consumer credit. We may need to rely on the credit markets, particularly for short-term borrowings from banks in China, as well as the capital markets, to meet our financial commitments and short-term liquidity needs if internal funds from our operations are not available to be allocated to such purposes. Disruptions in the credit and capital markets could adversely affect our ability to draw on such short-term bank facilities. Our access to funds under such credit facilities is dependent on the ability of the banks that are parties to those facilities to meet their funding commitments, which may be dependent on governmental economic policies in China. Those banks may not be able to meet their funding commitments to us if they experience shortages of capital and liquidity or if they experience excessive volumes of borrowing requests from us and other borrowers within a short period of time.

Long-term disruptions in the credit and capital markets could result from uncertainty, changing or increased regulations, reduced alternatives or failures of financial institutions could adversely affect our access to the liquidity needed for our business. Any disruption could require us to take measures to conserve cash until the markets stabilize or until alternative credit arrangements or other funding for our business needs can be arranged. Such measures may include deferring capital expenditures, and reducing or eliminating discretionary uses of cash. These events would adversely impact our results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Our bank accounts in China are not insured or protected against loss.

The China Operating Companies maintain cash accounts with various banks located in China. Such cash accounts are not insured or otherwise protected. Should any bank holding such cash deposits become insolvent, or if the China Operating Companies are otherwise unable to withdraw funds, those entities would lose the cash on deposit with that particular bank.

Changes in China’s environmental laws and policies may affect our financial condition.

Our eco-friendly construction materials and projects are primarily used in the construction industry. Our business is in line with China’s current focus on environmental protection policies, specifically the 14^th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025). However, should China alter its environmental policies towards less regulation, we believe demand for our eco-friendly construction materials and equipment will decrease, adversely impacting our results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure

We will likely not pay dividends in the foreseeable future.

We have not previously paid any cash dividends, and we do not anticipate paying any dividends on our common shares in the foreseeable future. We have incurred net loss in 2020 and 2019, we cannot assure that our operations will result in sufficient revenues to enable us to operate at profitable levels or to generate positive cash flows from operating activities. Dividend policy is subject to the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on, among other things, our earnings, financial condition, capital requirements and other factors. If we determine to pay dividends on any of our common shares in the future, we will be dependent, in large part, on receipt of funds from Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng for our cash needs, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions if any, to ourits shareholders, subject to ReTo’s M&A and the Act or to service any debtexpenses and other obligations it may incur.

Within our direct holding structure, the cross-border transfer of funds from ReTo to its PRC subsidiaries is permitted under laws and regulations of the PRC currently in effect. Specifically, ReTo is permitted to provide funding to its PRC subsidiaries in the form of shareholder loans or capital contributions, subject to satisfaction of applicable government registration, approval and filing requirements in China. There are no quantity limits on ReTo’s ability to make capital contributions to its PRC subsidiaries under the PRC law and regulations. However, the PRC subsidiaries may only procure shareholder loans from REIT Holding in an amount equal to the difference between their respective registered capital and total investment amount as recorded in the Chinese Foreign Investment Comprehensive Management Information System or 2.5 times of its net assets, at the discretion of such PRC subsidiary.

For additional information, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Related to Doing Business in China— PRC regulation of loans to, and direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may restrict or prevent ReTo from making additional capital contributions or loans to its PRC subsidiaries.”

Subject to the passive foreign investment company rules, the requirements of ReTo’s M&A and the Act, the gross amount of any distribution that we make to investors with respect to our securities (including any amounts withheld to reflect PRC withholding taxes) will be taxable as a dividend, to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under United States federal income tax principles. Any proposed dividend would be subject to ReTo’s M&A and the Act; specifically, ReTo may incuronly pay a dividend if ReTo’s directors are satisfied, on reasonable grounds, that, immediately after the dividend is paid, the value of its assets will exceed its liabilities and it will be able to pay our operating expenses. its debts as they fall due.

The PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law (the “EIT Law”) and its implementation rules provide that a withholding tax at a rate of 10% will be applicable to dividends payable by PRC companies to non-PRC-resident enterprises unless reduced under treaties or arrangements between the PRC central government and the governments of other countries or regions where the non-PRC resident enterprises are tax resident. Pursuant to the tax agreement between Mainland China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the withholding tax rate in respect to the payment of dividends by entities organizeda PRC enterprise to a Hong Kong enterprise may be reduced to 5% from a standard rate of 10%. However, if the relevant tax authorities determine that our transactions or arrangements are for the primary purpose of enjoying a favorable tax treatment, the relevant tax authorities may adjust the favorable withholding tax in Chinathe future. Accordingly, there is subjectno assurance that the reduced 5% withholding rate will apply to limitations as described herein. Under British Virgin Islands law,dividends received by our Hong Kong subsidiary from our PRC subsidiaries. This withholding tax will reduce the amount of dividends we may only payreceive from our PRC subsidiaries.

Restrictions on Our Ability to Transfer Cash Out of China and to U.S. Investors

Our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends from surplus (the excess, if any, at the time of the determination of the total assets ofis based upon their distributable earnings. Current PRC regulations permit our Company over the sum of our liabilities, as shown in our books of account, plus our capital), and we must be solvent before and after the dividend payment in the sense that we will be able to satisfy our liabilities as they become due in the ordinary course of business; and the realizable value of assets of our Company will not be less than the sum of our total liabilities, other than deferred taxes as shown on our books of account, and our capital. If we determinePRC subsidiaries to pay dividends on any of our common shares in the future, as a holding company, we will be dependent on receipt of funds from Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng. See “Dividend Policy.”

Pursuant to the Chinese enterprise income tax law, dividends payable by a foreign investment entity to its foreign investors are subject to a withholding tax of 10%. Similarly, dividends payable by a foreign investment entity to its Hong Kong investor who owns 25% or more of the equity of the foreign investment entity is subject to a withholding tax of 5%.

The payment of dividends by entities organized in China is subject to limitations, procedures and formalities. Regulations in China currently permit payment of dividendstheir respective shareholders only out of their accumulated profits, if any, as determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations in China. Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng are alsoregulations. In addition, under PRC law, each of our PRC subsidiaries is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profit based on Chinese accounting standardsprofits each year, if any, to its compulsory reserves fund certain statutory reserve funds until the accumulative amount of such reserves reachesreserve funds reach 50% of its registered capital.

The transfer to this reserve must be made before distribution of any dividend to shareholders. The surplus reserve fund is non-distributable other than during liquidation and can be used to fund previous years’ losses, if any, and may be utilized for business expansion or converted into registered capital, provided that the remaining reserve balance after such issue is These reserves are not less than 25% of the registered capital. As of December 31, 2020, and December 31, 2019, the accumulated appropriations to statutory reserves amounted to $2,386,119 and $2,632,797, respectively.

Our business may be materially and adversely affected if any of our China Operating Companies declare bankruptcy or become subject to a dissolution or liquidation proceeding.

The Enterprise Bankruptcy Law of China provides that an enterprise may be liquidated if the enterprise fails to settle its debtsdistributable as and when they fall due and if the enterprise’s assets are, or are demonstrably, insufficient to clear such debts.

Our China Operating Companies hold certain assets that are important to our business operations.cash dividends. If any of our China Operating Companies undergoes a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, unrelated third-party creditorsChinese subsidiaries incurs debt on its own behalf in the future, the instruments governing such debt may claim rights to some or all of these assets, thereby hindering ourrestrict its ability to operatepay dividends to ReTo.

To address persistent capital outflows and the RMB’s depreciation against the U.S. dollar in the fourth quarter of 2016, the People’s Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, implemented a series of capital control measures in the subsequent months, including stricter vetting procedures for China-based companies to remit foreign currency for overseas acquisitions, dividend payments and shareholder loan repayments. The PRC government may continue to strengthen its capital controls and our business, whichPRC subsidiaries’ dividends and other distributions may be subject to tightened scrutiny in the future. The PRC government also imposes controls on the conversion of RMB into foreign currencies and the remittance of currencies out of the PRC. Therefore, we may experience difficulties in completing the administrative procedures necessary to obtain and remit foreign currency for the payment of dividends from our profits, if any.

The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act

The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, or the HFCAA, was enacted on December 18, 2020. The HFCAA states that if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspection by the PCAOB for three consecutive years beginning in 2021, the SEC shall prohibit our Common Shares from being traded on a national securities exchange or other over-the-counter markets.

On December 16, 2021, the PCAOB issued its determination that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely PCAOB-registered public accounting firms headquartered in mainland China and in Hong Kong, because of positions taken by PRC authorities in those jurisdictions, and the PCAOB included in the report of its determination a list of the accounting firms that are headquartered in the PRC or Hong Kong. This list does not include our auditor, YCM CPA Inc. While our auditor is based in the U.S. and is registered with PCAOB and subject to PCAOB inspection, in the event it is later determined that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely our auditor, then such lack of inspection could cause our securities to be delisted from the stock exchange. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Doing Business in China — Our Common Shares may be delisted under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act if the PCAOB is unable to inspect our auditors. The delisting of our Common Shares, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment. Additionally, the inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections deprives our business, financial conditioninvestors with the benefits of such inspections.”

Regulatory Permissions and results of operations.Developments

We may rely on dividends paid by China Operating Companies to satisfy our cash needs.

We may rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paidhave been advised by our China Operating Companies for our cash needs, includingPRC Counsel that pursuant to the funds necessary to pay dividendsrelevant laws and other cash distributions, if any, to our shareholders, to service any debt we may incur and to pay our operating expenses. Two loans governing part of the current debts incurred by Beijing REIT and REIT Changjiang have restrictions on their abilities to pay dividends, and any future financing arrangements may impose such restrictions as well. Further, the payment of dividends by entities organizedregulations in China, is subject to limitations as described herein. Under British Virgin Islands law, we may only pay dividends from surplus (the excess, if any, at the time of the determination of the total assetsnone of our company overPRC subsidiaries’ current business is stipulated on the sumSpecial Administrative Measures for the Access of our liabilities, as shown in our booksForeign Investment (Negative List) (2021 Version) (the “2021 Negative List”) promulgated by the Ministry of account, plus our capital), and we must be solvent before and after the dividend payment in the sense that we will be able to satisfy our liabilities as they become due in the ordinary course of business;Commerce (the “MOFCOM”) and the realizable value of assets of our company will not be less than the sum of our total liabilities, other than deferred taxes as shown on our books of account,National Development and our capital. If we determine to pay dividends on any of our common shares in the future, as a holding company, we will be dependent on receipt of funds from Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng. See “Dividend Policy.” 

Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng are required to allocate a portion of its after-tax profits, to the statutory reserve fund, and as determined by its board of directors, to the staff welfare and bonus funds, which may not be distributed to equity owners.

Pursuant to Company Law of P.R. China (2018 Revision) and Implementing Rules for the LawReform Commission of the People’s Republic of China (“NDRC”) which entered into force on Wholly Foreign-owned Enterprises (2014 Revision), Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalJanuary 1, 2022. Therefore, our PRC subsidiaries are able to conduct their business without being subject to restrictions imposed by the foreign investment laws and REIT Yancheng areregulations of the PRC.

Currently, none of our PRC subsidiaries is required to allocateobtain additional licenses or permits beyond a portionregular business license for their operations currently being conducted. Each of its after-tax profits,our PRC subsidiaries is required to obtain a regular business license from the statutory reserve fund, and in accordance with its Articles of Association, to the staff welfare and bonus funds. No lower than 10% of an enterprise’s after tax-profits should be allocated to the statutory reserve fund. When the statutory reserve fund account balance is equal to or greater than 50% of both Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng’s registered capital, no further allocation to the statutory reserve fund account is required. According to the Articles of Association of Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng, their board of directors determines the amount contributed to the staff welfare and bonus funds. The staff welfare and bonus fund is used for the collective welfarelocal branch of the staffState Administration for Market Regulation (“SAMR”). Each of Beijing REIT, REIT Ecologicalour PRC subsidiaries has obtained a valid business license for its respective business scope, and REIT Yancheng. These reserves represent appropriations of retained earnings determined according to Chinese law.no application for any such license has been denied.

As of the date of this annual report, the amounts of staff welfareReTo and bonus funds haveits PRC subsidiaries are not yet been determined, and we have not committedsubject to establishing such amounts at this time. Under current Chinese laws, Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng are required to set aside staff welfare and bonus funds amounts, but has not yet done so. Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng have not done so because Chinese authorities grant companies flexibility in making a determination. Chinese law requires such a determination to be made in accordance with the Company’s organizational documents and both Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng’s organizational documents do not require the determination to be made within a particular timeframe. Although we have not yet been required by Chinese authorities to make such determinations or set aside such amounts, Chinese authorities may require Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng to rectify its noncompliance and we may be fined if we fail to do so after receiving a warning within its set time period.

Additionally, Chinese law provides that a foreign-invested company must allocate a portion of after-tax profits to the statutory reserve fund and the staff welfare and bonus funds reserve prior to the retention of profits or the distribution of profits to its foreign shareholders. Therefore, if for any reason, the dividendspermission requirements from Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng cannot be repatriated to us or not in time, our cash flow may be adversely impacted or we may become insolvent.

Our failure to obtain prior approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC”(the “CSRC”) for, the listing and trading of our common shares on a foreign stock exchange could have a material adverse effect upon our business, operating results, reputation and trading price of our common shares.

On August 8, 2006, six Chinese regulatory agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s RepublicCyberspace Administration of China (“MOFCOM”(the “CAC”), jointly issued or any other entity that is required to approve of its PRC subsidiaries’ operations. Recently, the PRC government initiated a series of regulatory actions and made a number of public statements on the regulation of business operations in China with little advance notice, including cracking down on illegal activities in the securities market, enhancing supervision over China-based companies listed overseas, adopting new measures to extend the scope of cybersecurity reviews, and expanding efforts in anti-monopoly enforcement.

Among other things, the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors (the “M&A Rules”) and Anti-Monopoly Law of the People’s Republic of China promulgated by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress which became effective in 2008 (the “Anti-Monopoly Law”), established additional procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex. Such regulation requires, among other things, that the MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor acquires control of a PRC domestic enterprise or a foreign company with substantial PRC operations, if certain thresholds under the Provisions of the State Council on the Standard for Declaration of Concentration of Business Operators, issued by the State Council in 2008, are triggered. Moreover, the Anti-Monopoly Law requires that transactions which involve the national security, the examination on the national security shall also be conducted according to the relevant provisions of the State Council. In addition, the PRC Measures for the Security Review of Foreign Investment which became effective in January 2021 require acquisitions by foreign investors of PRC companies engaged in military-related or certain other industries that are crucial to national security be subject to security review before consummation of any such acquisition.

On July 6, 2021, the relevant PRC governmental authorities made public the Opinions on Strictly Cracking Down Illegal Securities Activities in Accordance with the Law. These opinions emphasized the need to strengthen the administration over illegal securities activities and the supervision on overseas listings by China-based companies and proposed to take effective measures, such as promoting the construction of relevant regulatory systems to deal with the risks and incidents faced by China-based overseas-listed companies. As these opinions are recently issued, official guidance and related implementation rules have not been issued yet and the interpretation of these opinions remains unclear at this stage. Given the current PRC regulatory environment, it is uncertain when and whether ReTo, REIT Holdings or any of our PRC subsidiaries will be required to obtain permission from the PRC government to list on U.S. exchanges in the future, and even when such permission is obtained, whether it will be denied or rescinded. See “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China—The approval and/or other requirements of the CSRC or other PRC governmental authorities may be required in connection with an offering under PRC rules, regulations or policies, and, if required, we cannot predict whether or how soon we will be able to obtain such approval.” As of the date of this annual report, we have not received any inquiry, notice, warning, or sanctions regarding offshore offering from the CSRC or any other PRC governmental authorities.

On July 10, 2021, the Cyberspace Administration of China published the Measures for Cybersecurity Review (Revised Draft for Comments), or the Measures, for public comments, which propose to authorize the relevant government authorities to conduct cybersecurity review on a range of activities that affect or may affect national security, including listings in foreign countries by companies that possess the personal data of more than one million users. On December 28, 2021, the Measures for Cybersecurity Review (2021 version) was promulgated and became effective on February 15, 2022, which iterates that any “online platform operators” controlling personal information of more than one million users which seeks to list in a foreign stock exchange should also be subject to cybersecurity review. The Measures for Cybersecurity Review (2021 version), further elaborates the factors to be considered when assessing the national security risks of the relevant activities, including, among others, (i) 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; and (ii) the risk of critical information infrastructure, core data, important data or a large amount of personal information being affected, controlled, or maliciously used by foreign governments after listing abroad. The Cyberspace Administration of China has said that under the proposed rules companies holding data on more than 1,000,000 users must now apply for cybersecurity approval when seeking listings in other nations because of the risk that such data and personal information could be “affected, controlled, and maliciously exploited by foreign governments.” The cybersecurity review will also look into the potential national security risks from overseas IPOs.

As advised by our PRC legal counsel, the PRC governmental authorities may have wide discretion in the interpretation and enforcement of these laws, including the interpretation of the scope of “critical information infrastructure operators”. In anticipation of the strengthened implementation of cybersecurity laws and regulations and the continued expansion of our business, we may face challenges in addressing its requirements and make necessary changes to our internal policies and practices in data processing. 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 December 24, 2021, the CSRC released the Administrative Provisions of the State Council Regarding the Overseas Issuance and Listing of Securities by Domestic Enterprises (Draft for Comments) (the “Draft Administrative Provisions”) and the Measures for the Overseas Issuance of Securities and Listing Record-Filings by Domestic Enterprises (Draft for Comments) (the “Draft Filing Measures,” collectively with the Draft Administrative Provisions, the “Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing”), both of which have a comment period that expired on January 23, 2022. The Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing lay out the filing regulation arrangement for both direct and indirect overseas listing, and clarify the determination criteria for indirect overseas listing in overseas markets. Among other things, if a domestic enterprise intends to indirectly offer and list securities in an overseas market and conduct follow-on offerings after the listing, the record-filing obligation is with a major operating entity incorporated in the PRC and such filing obligation shall be completed within three working days after the overseas listing application is submitted or the completion of the issuance of security in the follow-on offering. The required filing materials for an initial public offering and listing shall include but not limited to: regulatory opinions, record-filing, approval and other documents issued by competent regulatory authorities of relevant industries (if applicable); and security assessment opinion issued by relevant regulatory authorities (if applicable) and the filing materials for issuing overseas listing securities in an follow-on offering shall include but not limited to: record-filing and domestic legal opinion.

The Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing, if enacted, may subject us to additional compliance requirement in the future, and we cannot assure you that we will be able to get the clearance of filing procedures under the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas List on a timely basis, or at all. As of the date of this annual report, the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings have not been promulgated, and we have not been required to obtain permission from the government of China for any offering and continuous listing pursuant to this annual report. While the final version of the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listings are expected to be adopted in 2022, we believe that none of the situation which would clearly prohibit overseas offering and listing would apply to us. In reaching this conclusion, we are relying on an opinion of our PRC counsel and that there is uncertainty inherent in relying on an opinion of counsel in connection with whether we are required to obtain permissions from the Chinese government that is required to approve of our operations and/or offering. Any failure of us to fully comply with new regulatory requirements may significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to offer or continue to offer our securities, cause significant disruption to our business operations, and severely damage our reputation, which would materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations and cause our Common Shares to significantly decline in value or become worthless.

On August 20, 2021, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China promulgated the Personal Information Protection Law, which integrates the scattered rules with respect to personal information rights and privacy protection and took effect on November 1, 2021. Personal information refers to information related to identified or identifiable natural persons which is recorded by electronic or other means and excluding anonymized information. The Personal Information Protection Law provides that a personal information processor could process personal information only under prescribed circumstances such as with the consent of the individual concerned and where it is necessary for the conclusion or performance of a contract to which such individual is a party to the contract. If a personal information processor shall provide personal information to overseas parties, various conditions shall be met, which includes security evaluation by the national network department and personal information protection certification by professional institutions. The Personal Information Protection Law raises the protection requirements for processing personal information, and many specific requirements of the Personal Information Protection Law remain to be clarified by the Cyberspace Administration of China, other regulatory authorities, and courts in practice. We may be required to make further adjustments to our business practices to comply with the personal information protection laws and regulations.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Summary of Risk Factors

Below please find a summary of the principal risks we face, organized under relevant headings.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

We face risks and uncertainties related to doing business in China in general, including, but not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

We are subject to risks and uncertainties related to our business and industry, including, but not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Our Newly Acquired Businesses and Related Industries

We face risks and uncertainties related to the Acquisition, the newly acquired businesses and related industries, including, but not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to our Common Shares

We face risks and uncertainties related to our Common Shares, including, but not limited to, the following:

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Changes in the political and economic policies of the PRC government or in relations between China and the United States may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and may result in our inability to sustain our growth and expansion strategies.

Substantially all of our operations are conducted in the PRC and substantially all of our revenues is sourced from the PRC. Accordingly, our financial condition and results of operations are affected to a significant extent by economic, political and legal developments in the PRC or changes in government relations between China and the United States or other governments. There is significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the United States and China with respect to trade policies, treaties, government regulations and tariffs.

The PRC economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including the extent 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 by allocating resources, controlling payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy, regulating financial services and institutions and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies. 

While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth in the past four decades, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy. The PRC government has implemented various measures to encourage economic growth and guide the allocation of resources. Some of these measures may benefit the overall PRC economy, but may also have a negative effect on us. Our financial condition and results of operation could be materially and adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations that are applicable to us. In addition, the PRC government has implemented in the past certain measures, including interest rate increases, to control the pace of economic growth. These measures may cause decreased economic activity.

In July 2021, the Chinese government provided new guidance on China-based companies raising capital outside of China. In light of such developments, the SEC has imposed enhanced disclosure requirements on China-based companies seeking to register securities with the SEC. As substantially all of our operations are based in China, any future Chinese, U.S. or other rules and regulations that place restrictions on capital raising or other activities by China based companies could adversely affect our business and results of operations. If the business environment in China deteriorates from the perspective of domestic or international investment, or if relations between China and the United States or other governments deteriorate, our operations in China as well as the market price of our Common Shares may be adversely affected.

There are uncertainties regarding the interpretation and enforcement of PRC laws, rules and regulations.

Substantially all of our operations are conducted in the PRC, and are governed by PRC laws, rules and regulations. Our PRC subsidiaries are subject to laws, rules and regulations applicable to foreign investment in China. The PRC legal system is a civil law system based on written statutes. Unlike the common law system, prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited precedential value. In 1979, the PRC government began to promulgate a comprehensive system of laws, rules and regulations governing economic matters in general. The overall effect of legislation over the past three decades has significantly enhanced the protections afforded to various forms of foreign investment in China. However, China has not developed a fully integrated legal system, and recently enacted laws, rules and regulations may not sufficiently cover all aspects of economic activities in China or may be subject to significant degrees of interpretation by PRC regulatory agencies. In particular, because these laws, rules and regulations, especially those relating to the internet, are relatively new, and because of the limited number of published decisions and the nonbinding nature of such decisions, and because the laws, rules and regulations often give the relevant regulator significant discretion in how to enforce them, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws, rules and regulations involve uncertainties and can be inconsistent and unpredictable. In addition, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies and internal rules, some of which are not published on a timely basis or at all, and may have a retroactive effect. As a result, we may not be aware of our violation of these policies and rules until after the occurrence of the violation. Any administrative and court proceedings in China may be protracted, resulting in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention.

The PRC government has recently announced its plans to enhance its regulatory oversight of Chinese companies listing overseas. The Opinions on Strictly Cracking Down on Illegal Securities Activities issued on July 6, 2021 called for:

As the Opinions on Strictly Cracking Down on Illegal Securities Activities were recently issued, there are great uncertainties as to how soon legislative or administrative regulation making bodies will respond and what existing or new laws or regulations or detailed implementations and interpretations will be modified or promulgated, if any, and the potential impact such modified or new laws and regulations will have on companies like us, but among other things, our ability and the ability of our subsidiaries to obtain external financing through the issuance of equity securities overseas could be negatively affected.

On December 24, 2021, the CSRC released the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing, which aim to establish a unified supervision system and promote cross-border regulatory cooperation. The Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing lay out filing procedures for domestic companies to record their initial public offerings and follow-on offerings abroad with the CSRC. Issuers are required to file follow-on offerings with the CSRC within 3 business days after the closing of such offerings.

According to the Q&A held by CSRC officials for journalists thereafter, the CSRC will adhere to the principle of non-retroactive application of law and first focus on issuers conducting initial public offerings and follow-on offerings by requiring them to complete the registration procedures. Other issuers will be given a sufficient transition period. The CSRC officials also noted that the regulation system contemplated by the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing differentiates between initial public offerings and follow-on offerings to take into account overseas capital markets’ fast and efficient features and to reduce impacts on overseas financing activities by domestic companies. If the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing are enacted in their current forms, we expect to perform necessary registration filings with the CSRC for our follow-on offering within the prescribed transition period and for any follow-on offering in the event that it takes place after the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing enter into force. However, it is uncertain when the Draft Rules Regarding Overseas Listing will take effect or if they will take effect as in their current forms.

Our business is subject to complex and evolving laws and regulations regarding privacy and data protection. Compliance with China’s new Data Security Law, Cybersecurity Review Measures, Personal Information Protection Law, as well as additional laws, regulations and guidelines that the Chinese government promulgates in the future may entail significant expenses and could materially affect our business.

Regulatory authorities in China have implemented and are considering further legislative and regulatory proposals concerning data protection. China’s new Data Security Law went into effect on September 1, 2021. The Data Security Law provides that the data processing activities must be conducted based on “data classification and hierarchical protection system” for the purpose of data protection and prohibits entities in China from transferring data stored in China to foreign law enforcement agencies or judicial authorities without prior approval by the Chinese government. The Data Security Law sets forth the legal liabilities of entities and individuals found to be in violation of their data protection obligations, including rectification order, warning, fines of up to RMB5 million, suspension of relevant business, and revocation of business permits or licenses.

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. 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. Any failure or delay in the completion of the cybersecurity review procedures may prevent the critical information infrastructure operator 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. The PRC government recently launched cybersecurity reviews against a number of mobile apps operated by several U.S.-listed Chinese companies and prohibiting these apps from registering new users during the review periods. We do not believe that we constitute a critical information infrastructure operator under the Cybersecurity Review Measures that took effect in June 2020.

On July 10, 2021, the CAC issued the Cybersecurity Review Measures (revised draft for public comments), which proposed to authorize the relevant government authorities to conduct cybersecurity review on a range of activities that affect or may affect national security. The PRC National Security Law covers various types of national security, including technology security and information security. The revised Cybersecurity Review Measures took effect on February 15, 2022. The revised Cybersecurity Review Measures expand the cybersecurity review to data processing operators in possession of personal information of over 1 million users if the operators intend to list their securities in a foreign country. Under the revised Cybersecurity Review Measures, the scope of entities required to undergo cybersecurity review to assess national security risks that arise from data processing activities would be expanded to include all critical information infrastructure operators who purchase network products and services and all data processors carrying out data processing activities that affect or may affect national security. In addition, such reviews would focus on the potential risk of core data, important data, or a large amount of personal information being stolen, leaked, destroyed, illegally used or exported out of China, or critical information infrastructure being affected, controlled or maliciously used by foreign governments after such a listing. An operator that violates these measures shall be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the PRC Cybersecurity Law and the PRC Data Security Law. As advised by our PRC counsel, we believe that the cybersecurity review requirement under the revised Cybersecurity Review Measures for online platform operators in possession of personal information of over one million users going public in a foreign country does not apply to us or any of our PRC subsidiaries, because we became a public company with shares listed on Nasdaq before such Measures entered into force on February 15, 2022. However, there remains uncertainty as to the interpretation and implementation of the revised Cybersecurity Review Measures and we cannot assure you that the CAC will reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel.

On November 14, 2021, the CAC released the Regulations on Network Data Security (draft for public comments) and accepted public comments until December 13, 2021. The draft Regulations on Network Data Security provide more detailed guidance on how to implement the general legal requirements under legislations such as the Cybersecurity Law, Data Security Law and the Personal Information Protection Law. The draft Regulations on Network Data Security follow the principle that the state will regulate based on a data classification and multi-level protection scheme. We believe that we or any of our PRC subsidiaries do not constitute an online platform operator under the draft Regulations on Network Data Security as proposed, which is defined as a platform that provides information publishing, social network, online transaction, online payment and online audio/video services. None of our PRC subsidiaries is an online platform operator themselves, nor is any of them required to obtain an ICP license for their current operations.

On August 20, 2021, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China promulgated the Personal Information Protection Law which became effective on November 1, 2021. The Personal Information Protection Law provides a comprehensive set of data privacy and protection requirements that apply to the processing of personal information and expands data protection compliance obligations to cover the processing of personal information of persons by organizations and individuals in China, and the processing of personal information of persons in China outside of China if such processing is for purposes of providing products and services to, or analyzing and evaluating the behavior of, persons in China. The Personal Information Protection Law also provides that critical information infrastructure operators and personal information processing entities who process personal information meeting a volume threshold to be set by Chinese cyberspace regulators are also required to store in China personal information generated or collected in China, and to pass a security assessment administered by Chinese cyberspace regulators for any export of such personal information. Lastly, the Personal Information Protection Law contains proposals for significant fines for serious violations of up to RMB 50 million or 5% of annual revenues from the prior year and may also be ordered to suspend any related activity by competent authorities. We have access to certain information of our customers in providing services and may be required to further adjust our business practice to comply with new regulatory requirements.

Interpretation, application and enforcement of these laws, rules and regulations evolve from time to time and their scope may continually change, through new legislation, amendments to existing legislation or changes in enforcement. Compliance with the PRC Cybersecurity Law and the PRC Data Security Law could significantly increase the cost to us of providing our service offerings, require significant changes to our operations or even prevent us from providing certain service offerings in jurisdictions in which we currently operate or in which we may operate in the future. Despite our efforts to comply with applicable laws, regulations and other obligations relating to privacy, data protection and information security, it is possible that our practices or service offerings could fail to meet all of the requirements imposed on us by the PRC Cybersecurity Law, the PRC Data Security Law and/or related implementing regulations. Any failure on our part to comply with such law or regulations or any other obligations relating to privacy, data protection or information security, or any compromise of security that results in unauthorized access, use or release of personally identifiable information or other data, or the perception or allegation that any of the foregoing types of failure or compromise has occurred, could damage our reputation, discourage new and existing counterparties from contracting with us or result in investigations, fines, suspension or other penalties by Chinese government authorities and private claims or litigation, any of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Even if our practices are not subject to legal challenge, the perception of privacy concerns, whether or not valid, may harm our reputation and brand and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, the legal uncertainty created by the Data Security Law and the recent Chinese government actions could materially adversely affect our ability, on favorable terms, to raise capital, including engaging in follow-on offerings of our securities in the U.S. market.

PRC laws and regulations establish complex procedures in connection with certain acquisitions of China-based companies by foreign investors, which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth through acquisitions or mergers in China.

On August 8, 2006, six PRC regulatory agencies, including the MOFCOM, the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the State Administration of Taxation, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the CSRC, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, jointly adopted the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules, which came into effect on September 8, 2006 and were amended on June 22, 2009 (the New “M&A Rule”).2009. The New M&A Rule containsRules include, among other things, provisions that purport to require that an offshore special purpose vehicle (“SPV”) formed for the purpose of an overseas listing purposes and controlled directly or indirectly by Chinese companies or individuals shallof securities of a PRC company obtain the approval of the CSRCChina Securities Regulatory Commission prior to the listing and trading of such SPV’sspecial purpose vehicle’s securities on an overseas stock exchange. On September 21, 2006, the CSRC published Provisions on Indirect Issuanceits official website procedures regarding its approval of Securities Overseas by a Domestic Enterprise or Overseas Listing of Its Securities for Trading, which specify documents and materials required to be submitted to the CSRC by a SPV seeking CSRC’s approval for overseas listings.

listings through special purpose vehicles. However, the application of the New M&A Rulesubstantial uncertainty remains unclear with no consensus currently existing among leading Chinese law firms regarding the scope and applicability of the CSRCM&A Rules to offshore special purpose vehicles.

The regulations also established additional procedures and requirements that are expected to make merger and acquisition activities in China by foreign investors more time consuming and complex, including requirements in some instances that the MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise, or that the approval requirement. Our Chinese counsel has given usfrom the following advice, basedMOFCOM be obtained in circumstances where overseas companies established or controlled by PRC enterprises or residents acquire affiliated domestic companies.

Moreover, according to the Anti-Monopoly Law of the People’s Republic of China promulgated on their understandingAugust 30, 2007 and the Provisions on Thresholds for Reporting of current Chinese lawsConcentrations of Undertakings (the “Prior Reporting Rules”) issued by the State Council in August 2008 and regulations:amended in September 2018, the concentration of business undertakings by way of mergers, acquisitions or contractual arrangements that allow one market player to take control of or to exert decisive impact on another market player must also be notified in advance to the anti-monopoly enforcement agency of the State Council when the applicable threshold is crossed and such concentration shall not be implemented without the clearance of prior reporting. In addition, the Regulations on Implementation of Security Review System for the Merger and Acquisition of Domestic Enterprise by Foreign Investors (the “Security Review Rules”) issued by the MOFCOM that became effective in September 2011 specify that mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors that raise “national defense and security” concerns and mergers and acquisitions through which foreign investors may acquire de facto control over domestic enterprises that raise “national security” concerns are subject to strict review by the MOFCOM, and the rules prohibit any activities attempting to bypass a security review by structuring the transaction through, among other things, trusts, entrustment or contractual control arrangements.

We may grow our business in part by acquiring other companies operating in our industries. Compliance with the requirements of the regulations to complete such transactions could be time-consuming, and any required approval processes, including approval from the MOFCOM, may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions, which could affect our ability to expand our business or maintain our market share.

The CSRC has not issued any such definitive rule or interpretation, and we have not chosen to voluntarily request approval under the New M&A Rule. We did not obtain CSRC approval prior to our initial public offering. If prior CSRC approval was required, we may face regulatory actions or other sanctions from the CSRC or other Chinese regulatory authorities. Theseagencies may be required in connection with our overseas capital-raising activities under Chinese law.

The M&A Rules purport to require offshore special purpose vehicles that are controlled by Chinese companies or individuals and that have been formed for the purpose of seeking a public listing on an overseas stock exchange through acquisitions of Chinese domestic companies or assets in exchange for the shares of the offshore special purpose vehicles shall obtain CSRC approval prior to publicly listing their securities on an overseas stock exchange.

Based on our understanding of the Chinese laws and regulations currently in effect and in the opinion of our PRC legal counsel, we will not be required to submit an application to the CSRC for its approval of any of our offerings of securities to foreign investors under the M&A Rules. However, there remains some uncertainties as to how the M&A Rules will be interpreted or implemented, and its opinions summarized above are subject to any new laws, rules and regulations or detailed implementations and interpretations in any form relating to the M&A Rules. We cannot assure you that relevant Chinese government agencies, including the CSRC, would reach the same conclusion.

Furthermore, on July 6, 2021, the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the General Office of the State Council jointly promulgated the Opinions on Strictly Cracking Down on Illegal Securities Activities, pursuant to which Chinese regulators are required to accelerate rulemaking related to the overseas issuance and listing of securities, and update the existing laws and regulations related to data security, cross-border data flow, and management of confidential information. Numerous regulations, guidelines and other measures have been or are expected to be adopted under the umbrella of or in addition to the Cybersecurity Law and Data Security Law.

As part of such efforts, the CAC issued the Cybersecurity Review Measures (revised draft for public comments) on July 10, 2021, which went into effect on February 15, 2022. The current Cybersecurity Review Measures expand the cybersecurity review to online platform operators in possession of personal information of over one million users if the operators intend to list their securities in a foreign country. And such reviews will focus on the potential risk of core data, important data, or a large amount of personal information being stolen, leaked, destroyed, illegally used or exported out of China, or critical information infrastructure being affected, controlled or maliciously used by foreign governments after a listing outside China. As advised by our PRC counsel, we believe that the cybersecurity review requirement under the Cybersecurity Review Measures currently in effect for online platform operators in possession of personal information of over one million users going public in a foreign country does not apply to us or any of our PRC subsidiaries and we or any of our PRC subsidiaries are not required to apply to the CAC for a cybersecurity review, because we became a public company with shares listed on Nasdaq before the effective date of the Cybersecurity Review Measures on February 15, 2022. However, there remains uncertainty as to the interpretation and implementation of the revised Cybersecurity Review Measures and we cannot assure you that the CAC will reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel.

We believe that we and our PRC subsidiaries are compliant with the regulations and policies that have been issued by the CAC to date and will continue to closely monitor the interpretation, enforcement and implications of such regulations and policies as well as any new regulations and rules that the CAC or other Chinese regulatory agencies may issue in the future.

As there are still uncertainties regarding the interpretation and implementation of such regulatory guidance, we cannot assure you that we will be able to comply with new regulatory requirements relating to our future overseas capital-raising activities and we may become subject to more stringent requirements with respect to matters including data privacy and cross-border investigation and enforcement of legal claims. Notwithstanding the foregoing, as of the date of this annual report, we are not aware of any Chinese laws or regulations in effect requiring that we obtain permission from any Chinese authority to issue securities to foreign investors, and we have not received any inquiry, notice, warning, or sanction in relation to the listing and trading of our Common Shares on Nasdaq from the CSRC, the CAC or any other Chinese authorities that have jurisdiction over our operations.

We are advised by our PRC counsel that based on the Chinese laws and regulations currently in effect, as of the date of this annual report, we are not required to submit an application to the CSRC, the CAC or any other PRC regulatory authority for the approval of our follow-on offerings of securities to foreign investors or trading of our Common Shares on Nasdaq. Neither ReTo nor any of its subsidiaries has obtained the approval or clearance from either the CSRC, the CAC or any other Chinese regulatory authority for any follow-on offering that we may make in the future. However, there remains significant uncertainty inherent in relying on an opinion of our PRC counsel as to the enactment, interpretation and implementation of regulatory requirements related to overseas securities offerings and other capital markets activities. The PRC regulatory agencies, including the CSRC or the CAC, may not reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel. If we do not receive or maintain the approvals, or we inadvertently conclude that such approvals are not required but the CSRC or other PRC regulatory body subsequently determines that we need to obtain the approval for any follow-on offering or if the CSRC or any other PRC government authorities promulgates any interpretation or implements rules subsequently that would require us to obtain CSRC or other governmental approvals for any follow-on offering, we may not be able to proceed with any follow-on offering, and may face adverse actions or sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies. In any such event, these regulatory agencies may impose fines and penalties uponon our operations in China, limit our operating privileges in China, delay or restrict the repatriation of the proceeds from any follow-on offering into the PRC or take other actions that could have a material adverse effect uponon our business, financial condition, resultsthe value of operations, reputation and prospects,our securities, as well as our ability to offer or continue to offer securities to investors or cause such securities to significantly decline in value or become worthless. In addition, if the trading priceCSRC, the CAC or other regulatory agencies later promulgate new rules requiring that we obtain their approvals for any of our common shares.

Substantial uncertainties exist with respect toofferings, we cannot assure you that we can obtain the interpretation and implementationapproval, authorizations, or complete required procedures or other requirements in a timely manner, or at all, or obtain a waiver of the framework rulesrequisite requirements if and when procedures are established to obtain such a waiver. Any uncertainties and/or negative publicity regarding such an approval requirement could have a material adverse effect on the value of the PRC Foreign Investment Law, and its applicationsecurities that we may require further rules to be issued by the Chinese government, which may incur and increase our compliance costs and expenses and accordingly our financial condition and operation will be adversely affected.registering.

On Mach 15, 2019, the National People’s CongressPRC regulation of China promulgated the Foreign Investment Law of the PRC aimingloans to, replace the major existing laws governing foreignand direct investment in, China. The Foreign Investment Law became effective on January 1, 2020. The Foreign Investment Law appliesPRC entities by offshore holding companies and governmental control of currency conversion may restrict or prevent ReTo from making additional capital contributions or loans to its PRC enterprises established, acquired or otherwise invested wholly or partially by foreign investors in a manner prescribedsubsidiaries.

ReTo, as an offshore holding company, is permitted under applicable PRC laws and regulations. It also governs investment projectsregulations to provide funding to its PRC subsidiaries through loans or capital contributions. However, loans by ReTo to its PRC subsidiaries to finance their activities cannot exceed statutory limits and activities in China by foreign investors. Accordingly, as our company qualifies as a “foreign investor” for these purposes, ourmust be registered with the local counterpart of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange and capital contributions to its PRC subsidiaries are subject to the Foreign Investment Law.

Underrequirement of making necessary filings in the Foreign Investment Law, a “negative list’Comprehensive Management Information System, and registration with other governmental authorities in China.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange promulgated or approved bythe Notice of the State Council will set forth industries that are prohibited industries and restricted industries. A foreign investor is prohibited to investAdministration of Foreign Exchange on Reforming the Administration of Foreign Exchange Settlement of Capital of Foreign-invested Enterprises, or Circular 19, effective on June 1, 2015, in any prohibited industry included therein. If a foreign investor is found to invest in any prohibited industry set forth under the “negative list”, such foreign investor may be required to, among other aspects, cease its investment activities, dispose of its equity interests in or assetsreplacement of the “foreign-invested enterprise” (“FIE”)Circular on the Relevant Operating Issues Concerning the Improvement of the Administration of the Payment and Settlement of Foreign Currency Capital of Foreign- Invested Enterprises, the Notice from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Relevant Issues Concerning Strengthening the Administration of Foreign Exchange Businesses, and the Circular on Further Clarification and Regulation of the Issues Concerning the Administration of Certain Capital Account Foreign Exchange Businesses. According to Circular 19, the flow and use of the RMB capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested company is regulated such that RMB capital may not be used for the issuance of RMB entrusted loans, the repayment of inter-enterprise loans or the repayment of bank loans that have been transferred to a third party. Although Circular 19 allows RMB capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested enterprise to be used for equity investments within the PRC, it also reiterates the principle that RMB converted from the foreign currency-denominated capital of a foreign-invested company may not be directly or indirectly used for purposes beyond its income confiscated. A foreign investor maybusiness scope. Thus, it is unclear whether the State Administration of Foreign Exchange will permit such capital to be permitted to investused for equity investments in a FIE that isthe PRC in a restricted industryactual practice. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange promulgated the Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Reforming and Standardizing the Foreign Exchange Settlement Management Policy of Capital Account, or Circular 16, effective on June 9, 2016, which reiterates some of the rules set forth in Circular 19, but changes the “negative list”, provided that relevant conditions are satisfiedprohibition against using RMB capital converted from foreign currency-denominated registered capital of a foreign-invested company to issue RMB entrusted loans to a prohibition against using such capital to grant loans to non-associated enterprises. Violations of Circular 19 and certain approvals are acquired from relevantCircular 16 could result in administrative penalties. Circular 19 and Circular 16 may significantly limit our ability to transfer any foreign currency ReTo holds to its PRC governmental authorities. With respectsubsidiaries, which may adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to industriesfund and expand our business in which foreign investment is not prohibited or restricted, domestic and foreign investors will be equally treated. On June 23, 2020, the Ministry of CommercePRC.

In light of the various requirements imposed by PRC (the “MOFCOM”)regulations on loans to, and the National Development and Reform Commission (the “NDRC”) jointly issued the latest version of Negative List (Edition 2020). See “Regulations — Regulations relating to Foreign Investment — The Guidance Catalogue of Industries for Foreign Investment”. Currently, our business falls within the permitted category. However,direct investment in, PRC entities by offshore holding companies, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete the necessary government registrations or obtain the necessary government approvals on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to future loans or future capital contributions by us to our PRC subsidiaries. As a result, uncertainties exist as to our ability to provide prompt financial support to our PRC subsidiaries when needed. If we fail to complete such registrations or obtain such approvals, our ability to use foreign currency and to capitalize or otherwise fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

We rely to a significant extent on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiaries to fund offshore cash and financing requirements and any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to make remittance to pay dividends to us could limit our ability to access cash generated by the operations of those entities.

We are a holding company and rely to a significant extent on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiaries for our offshore cash and financing requirements, including the funds necessary to pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders, fund inter-company loans, service any debt we may incur outside of China and pay our expenses. The laws, rules and regulations applicable to our PRC subsidiaries permit payments of dividends only out of their retained earnings, if any, determined in accordance with applicable accounting standards and regulations.

Under PRC laws, rules and regulations, each of our subsidiaries incorporated in China is required to set aside at least 10% of its after-tax profits each year, after making up for previous years’ accumulated losses, if any, to fund certain statutory reserves, until the aggregate amount of such fund reaches 50% of its registered capital. As a result of these laws, rules and regulations, our subsidiaries incorporated in China are restricted in their ability to transfer a portion of their respective net assets to their shareholders as dividends. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, these restricted assets totaled $48,035,523 and $46,119,381, respectively.

Limitations on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to make remittance to pay dividends to us could limit our ability to access cash generated by the operations of those entities, including to make investments or acquisitions that could be beneficial to our businesses, pay dividends to our shareholders or otherwise fund and conduct our business.

Any failure to comply with PRC regulations regarding the registration requirements for employee stock incentive plans may subject the PRC plan participants or us to fines and other legal or administrative sanctions.

Under current operationsPRC law, PRC citizens and non-PRC citizens who reside in China for a continuous period of no less than one year who participate in any stock incentive plan of an overseas publicly listed company offered to the director, supervisor, senior management and other employees, and any individual who has labor relationship with its domestic affiliated entities, are required to register with SAFE through a domestic qualified agent, which could be a PRC subsidiary of such overseas listed company, and complete certain other procedures. In addition, an overseas-entrusted institution must be retained to handle matters in connection with the exercise or any newly-developed businesssale of stock options and the purchase or sale of shares and interests. In addition, SAFE Circular 37 stipulates that PRC residents who participate in a share incentive plan of an overseas non-publicly-listed special purpose company may register with SAFE or its local branches before they obtain the incentive shares or exercise the share options. We and our executive officers and other employees who are PRC citizens or who reside in the futurePRC for a continuous period of not less than one year and who have been or will still deemedbe granted incentive shares or options are or will be subject to these regulations. Failure to complete the SAFE registrations for our employee incentive plans may subject our PRC resident personnel to fines and legal sanctions, and there may be “permitted”additional restrictions on the ability of them to exercise their stock options or remit proceeds gained from sale of their stock into the PRC, and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiaries and limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends to us. We also face regulatory uncertainties that could restrict our ability to adopt additional incentive plans for our directors, executive officers and employees under PRC law.

Our Common Shares may be delisted under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act if the PCAOB is unable to inspect our auditors. The delisting of our Common Shares, or the threat of their being delisted, may materially and adversely affect the value of your investment. Additionally, the inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections deprives our investors with the benefits of such inspections.

The HFCA Act was enacted on December 18, 2020. The HFCA Act states if the SEC determines that we have filed audit reports issued by a registered public accounting firm that has not been subject to inspection by the PCAOB for three consecutive years, the SEC shall prohibit our Common Shares from being traded on a national securities exchange or in the “negative list”, which may be promulgated or be amended from time to time byover the MOFCOM and the NDRC.

Our PRC subsidiaries will be characterized as FIEs. Once an entity is determined to be a FIE and its business operations fall within a restricted industry under the “negative list”, in order for a foreign investor to investcounter trading market in the FIE,  such entityU.S.

On March 24, 2021, the SEC adopted interim final rules relating to the implementation of certain disclosure and documentation requirements of the HFCA Act. We will be required to obtain entry clearancecomply with these rules if the SEC identifies us as having a “non-inspection” year under a process to be subsequently established by the SEC. The SEC is assessing how to implement other requirements of the HFCA Act, including the listing and approvalstrading prohibition requirements described above. Furthermore, on June 22, 2021, the U.S. Senate passed a bill which, if passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and signed into law, would reduce the number of consecutive non-inspection years required for triggering the prohibitions under the HFCA Act from three years to two. On September 22, 2021, the MOFCOM or its local counterparts and other relevant PRC government agencies. Our main products currently manufactured by us, including eco-friendly construction materials and equipment usedPCAOB adopted a final rule implementing the HFCA Act, which provides a framework for the productionPCAOB to use when determining, as contemplated under the HFCA Act, whether the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms located in a foreign jurisdiction because of a position taken by one or more authorities in that jurisdiction. On December 2, 2021, the SEC issued amendments to finalize rules implementing the submission and disclosure requirements in the HFCA Act. The rules apply to registrants that the SEC identifies as having filed an annual report with an audit report issued by a registered public accounting firm that is located in a foreign jurisdiction and that PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely because of a position taken by an authority in foreign jurisdictions. On December 16, 2021, the PCAOB issued a Determination Report which found that the PCAOB is unable to inspect or investigate completely registered public accounting firms headquartered in: (i) China, and (ii) Hong Kong. This list does not include our auditor, YCM CPA Inc.

Furthermore, various equity-based research organizations have recently published reports on China-based companies after examining their corporate governance practices, related party transactions, sales practices and financial statements, and these reports have led to special investigations and listing suspensions on U.S. national exchanges. Any similar scrutiny on us, regardless of its lack of merit, could cause the market price of our Common Shares to fall, divert management resources and energy, cause us to incur expenses in defending ourselves against rumors, and increase the premiums we pay for director and officer insurance.

Our independent registered public accounting firm, as an auditor of companies that are traded publicly in the United States and a firm registered with the PCAOB, is subject to laws in the United States pursuant to which the PCAOB conducts regular inspections to assess its compliance with the applicable professional standards. Our auditor is currently registered under the PCAOB and subject to PCAOB inspections. However, the recent developments would add uncertainties to our offering and we cannot assure you whether Nasdaq or regulatory authorities would apply additional and more stringent criteria to us after considering the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures and quality control procedures, adequacy of personnel and training, or sufficiency of resources, geographic reach or experience as it relates to the audit of our financial statements.

The SEC may propose additional rules or guidance that could impact us if our auditor is not subject to PCAOB inspection. For example, on August 6, 2020, the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets, or the PWG, issued the Report on Protecting United States Investors from Significant Risks from Chinese Companies to the then President of the United States. This report recommended the SEC implement five recommendations to address companies from jurisdictions that do not provide the PCAOB with sufficient access to fulfil its statutory mandate. Some of the concepts of these eco-friendly construction materials, do not fall in the prohibited or restricted industries under “negative list” that is currently effective.

The Foreign Investment Law also requires that the entity form, main organizations and business activities of an FIE established beforerecommendations were implemented with the enactment of the Foreign Investment LawHFCA Act. However, some of the recommendations were more stringent than the HFCA Act. For example, if a company was not subject to PCAOB inspection, the report recommended that the transition period before a company would be delisted would end on January 1, 2022.

The SEC has announced that the SEC staff is preparing a consolidated proposal for the rules regarding the implementation of the HFCA Act and to address the recommendations in accordancethe PWG report. It is unclear when the SEC will complete its rulemaking and when such rules will become effective and what, if any, of the PWG recommendations will be adopted. The implications of this possible regulation in addition to the requirements of the HFCA Act are uncertain. Such uncertainty could cause the market price of our Common Shares to be materially and adversely affected, and our securities could be delisted or prohibited from being traded “over-the-counter” earlier than would be required by the HFCA Act. If our securities are unable to be listed on another securities exchange by then, such a delisting would substantially impair your ability to sell or purchase our Common Shares when you wish to do so, and the risk and uncertainty associated with a potential delisting would have a negative impact on the price of our Common Shares.

The PCAOB’s inability to conduct inspections in China prevents it from fully evaluating the audits and quality control procedures of our independent registered public accounting firm. As a result, we and investors in our securities are deprived of the benefits of such PCAOB inspections. The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in China makes it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our independent registered public accounting firm’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China that are subject to the PCAOB inspections, which could cause investors and potential investors in our Common Shares to lose confidence in our audit procedures and reported financial information and the quality of our financial statements.

In May 2013, the PCAOB announced that it had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding on Enforcement Cooperation with the Chinese-Foreign Equity Joint Venture Enterprise Law, the Chinese-Foreign Cooperative Joint Venture Enterprise Law or the Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise Law comply withCSRC and the PRC Company Law,Ministry of Finance, which establishes a cooperative framework between the PRC Partnership Lawparties for the production and other laws (asexchange of audit documents relevant to investigations undertaken by the case might be) and there is a five-year transition period from January 1, 2020 for FIEs to fully comply with such requirements.  See “Regulations Relating to Foreign Investment - The Foreign Investment Law.”

The relevant business carried out by our PRC subsidiaries and our investmentPCAOB in the PRC subsidiaries currentlyor by the CSRC or the PRC Ministry of Finance in the United States. The PCAOB continues to be in discussions with the CSRC and the PRC Ministry of Finance to permit joint inspections in the PRC of audit firms that are not subject toregistered with the national security review under applicablePCAOB and audit Chinese companies that trade on U.S. exchanges.

The PRC government’s significant oversight over our business operation could result in a material adverse change in our operations and the value of our Common Shares.

We conduct our business in China primarily through our PRC subsidiaries. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. However, ifThe PRC government has significant oversight over the conduct of our future business, and it regulates and may intervene our operations, which could result in a material adverse change in our operation and/or potential mergers and acquisitions we enter into inthe value of our Common Shares. Also, the PRC government has recently indicated an intent to exert more oversight over offerings that are relatedconducted overseas and/or foreign investment in China-based issuers. Any such action could significantly limit or completely hinder our ability to material infrastructureoffer or other national security sensitive areascontinue to offer securities to investors. In addition, implementation of industry-wide regulations directly targeting our operations could cause our securities to significantly decline in value or industries involving certain key technologies, national security review requirements will likely apply and the review result that is in compliance with PRC laws should be definitive. It remains unclear when the specific implementation measuresbecome worthless. Therefore, investors of the Foreign Investment Law will be issuedReTo face potential uncertainty from actions taken by the State Council. GivenPRC government affecting our business.

We may be treated as a resident enterprise for PRC tax purposes under the uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretationEIT Law, and implementation of the Foreign Investment Law, its application may require further rules to be issued by Chinese government, which may incur and increase our compliance costs and expenses and accordingly our financial condition and operation will be adversely affected.

Risks Related to Doing Business in China

Under the Enterprise Income Tax Law, we may therefore be classified as a “Resident Enterprise” of China. Such classification will likely result in unfavorablesubject to PRC income tax consequences to us andon our non-PRC shareholders.global income.

China passed an Enterprise Income Tax Law (the “EIT Law”) and implementing rules, both of which became effective on January 1, 2008, EIT Law was subsequently amended by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress and became effective on February 24, 2017. Under the EIT Law, resident enterprises pay income tax at the rate of 25% for their worldwide income while non-resident enterprises pay 20% for their income generated from China and income generated overseas but are substantially related to the entities established in China by the non-resident enterprises. As far as the definition of resident enterprises, according to the EIT Law, an enterprise established outside of China with “de facto management bodies” within China is considered a “resident enterprise.” The implementing rules of the EIT Law define de facto management as “substantial and overall management and control over the production and operations, personnel, accounting, and properties” of the enterprise.

On April 22, 2009, the State Administration of Taxation of China issued Circular on Issues Concerning the Identification of Chinese-Controlled Overseas Registered Enterprises as Resident Enterprises with the Actual Standards of Organizational Management, or Circular 82, further interpreting the application of the EIT Law and its implementation to offshore entities controlled by a Chinese enterprise or group. Pursuant to the Circular 82, an enterprise incorporated in an offshore jurisdiction and controlled by a Chinese enterprise or group will be classified as a “resident enterprise” with its “de facto management body” located within China if  (i) the place where the senior management and core management departments that are in charge of its daily operations perform their duties is mainly located in China; (ii) its financial and human resources decisions are made by or are subject to approval by persons or bodies in China; (iii) its major assets, accounting books, company seals, and minutes and files of its board and shareholders’ meetings are located or kept in China; and (iv) at least half of the enterprise’s directors or senior management with voting rights frequently reside in China. A resident enterprise would have to pay a withholding tax at a rate of 10% when paying dividends to its non-PRC stockholders.

Given that ReTo Eco-Solutions does not have a PRC individual or a PRC enterprise or group, but a Hong Kong enterprise as its primary controlling shareholder, we believe Circular 82 will not apply to us. However, Circular 82 did mention that the facts-oriented recognition is more important than format in the case of recognizing “de facto management”. Although we have never been determined by any competent tax authorities to be a “resident enterprise”, and we have not seen any corporations with similar structures to ours to be determined as a “resident enterprise”, whether or not we will be recognized as a “resident enterprise” is subject to the PRC tax authorities’ discretion and their interpretation of the term “de facto management body”.

As for our Hong Kong business, we do not believe that we meet some of the conditions outlined. As trading companies, the key assets and records of REIT Holdings including the resolutions and meeting minutes of our board of directors and the resolutions and meeting minutes of our shareholders, are located and maintained outside the PRC. Accordingly, we believe that REIT holdings should not be treated as a “resident enterprise” for PRC tax purposes if the criteria for “de facto management body” as set forth in Circular 82 were deemed applicable to us. However, as the tax residency status of an enterprise is subject to determination by the PRC tax authorities and uncertainties remain with respect to the interpretation of the term “de facto management body” as applicable to our offshore entities, we will continue to monitor our tax status.

If the PRC tax authorities determine that we are a “resident enterprise” for PRC enterprise income tax purposes, a number of unfavorable PRC tax consequences could follow. First, we may be subject to the enterprise income tax at a rate of 25% on our worldwide taxable income as well as PRC enterprise income tax reporting obligations. In our case, this would mean that income such as non-China source income would be subject to PRC enterprise income tax at a rate of 25%. Second, under the EIT Law and its implementing rules, dividends paid to us from our PRC subsidiaries would qualify as “tax-exempt income.” Finally, it is possible that future guidance issued with respect to the new “resident enterprise” classification could result in a situation in which a 10% withholding tax is imposed on dividends we pay to our non-PRC stockholders and with respect to gains derived by our non-PRC stockholders from transferring our shares.

We may be exposed to liabilities under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Chinese anti-corruption law.

In connection with our initial public offering, we became subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”), and other laws that prohibit improper payments or offers of payments to foreign governments and their officials and political parties by U.S. persons and issuers as defined by the statute for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. We are also subject to the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the PRC and the relevant anti-bribery provisions of the Criminal Law of the PRC, or together, the “PRC Anti-Bribery Laws.” The current PRC Anti-Bribery Laws prohibit the payment of bribes to government officials, private companies or individuals in a commercial transaction or their agents. We have operations, agreements with third parties, and make sales in China, which may experience corruption. Our activities in China create the risk of unauthorized payments or offers of payments by one of the employees, consultants or distributors of our company, because these parties are not always subject to our control. We are in process of implementing an anticorruption program, which prohibits the offering or giving of anything of value to foreign officials, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. The anticorruption program also requires that clauses mandating compliance with our policy be included in all contracts with foreign sales agents, sales consultants and distributors and that they certify their compliance with our policy annually. It further requires all hospitality involving promotion of sales to foreign governments and government-owned or controlled entities to be in accordance with specified guidelines. In the meantime, we believe to date we have complied in all material respects with the provisions of the FCPA and the PRC Anti-Bribery Laws.

However, our existing safeguards and any future improvements may prove to be less than effective, and the employees, consultants or distributors of our Company may engage in conduct for which we might be held responsible. Violations of the FCPA or PRC Anti-Bribery Laws may result in severe criminal or administrative sanctions, and we may be subject to other liabilities, which could negatively affect our business, operating results and financial condition. In addition, the government may seek to hold our Company liable for successor liability FCPA violations committed by companies in which we invest or that we acquire.

If we become directly subject to the recent scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity involving U.S.-listed China-based companies, we may have to expend significant resources to investigate and resolve the matter which could harm our business operations and our reputation and could result in a loss of your investment in our shares, especially if such matter cannot be addressed and resolved favorably.

Recently, U.S. public companies that have substantially all of their operations in China, have been the subject of intense scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity by investors, financial commentators and regulatory agencies, such as the SEC. Much of the scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity has centered around financial and accounting irregularities, a lack of effective internal controls over financial accounting, inadequate corporate governance policies or a lack of adherence thereto and, in some cases, allegations of fraud. As a result of the scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity, the publicly traded stock of many U.S. listed Chinese companies has sharply decreased in value and, in some cases, has become virtually worthless. Many of these companies are now subject to shareholder lawsuits and SEC enforcement actions and are conducting internal and external investigations into the allegations. It is not clear what effect this sector-wide scrutiny, criticism and negative publicity will have on our Company and our business. If we become the subject of any unfavorable allegations, whether such allegations are proven to be true or untrue, we will have to expend significant resources to investigate such allegations and/or defend the Company. This situation may be a major distraction to our management. If such allegations are not proven to be groundless, our Company and business operations will be severely hampered and your investment in our shares could be rendered worthless.

Fluctuations in exchange rates could adversely affect our businessresult in foreign currency exchange losses to us and may reduce the value of, and amount in U.S. Dollars of dividends payable on, our securities.shares in foreign currency terms. 

Changes in the value of the RMB against the U.S. dollar, Euro and other foreign currencies are affected by, among other things, changes in China’s political and economic conditions. Any significant revaluation of the RMB may have a material adverse effect on our revenues and financial condition, and the value of, and any dividends payable on our shares in U.S. dollar terms. Although we use the United States dollar for financial reporting purposes, all of the transactions effected by the China Operating Companiesour PRC subsidiaries are denominated in China’s currency, the RMB. The value of the RMB fluctuates and is subject to changes in China’s political and economic conditions. We do not currently engage in hedging activities to protect against foreign currency risks. Even if we choose to engage in such hedging activities, we may not be able to do so effectively. Future movements in the exchange rate of the RMB could adversely affect our financial condition as we may suffer financial losses when transferring money raised outside of China into the country or paying vendors for services performed outside of China. For example, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars into RMB for our operations, appreciation of the RMB against the U.S. dollar would have an adverse effect on RMB amount we would receive from the conversion. Conversely, if we decide to convert our RMB into U.S. dollars for the purpose of paying dividends on our common sharesCommon Shares or for other business purposes, appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the RMB would have a negative effect on the U.S. dollar amount available to us. In addition, fluctuations of the RMB against other currencies may increase or decrease the cost of imports and exports, and thus affect the price-competitiveness of our products against products of foreign manufacturers or products relying on foreign inputs.

Since July 2005, the RMB is no longer pegged to the U.S. dollar. Although the People’s Bank of China regularly intervenes in the foreign exchange market to prevent significant short-term fluctuations in the exchange rate, the RMB may appreciate or depreciate significantly in value against the U.S. dollar in the medium to long term. Moreover, it is possible that in the future Chinese authorities may lift restrictions on fluctuations in the RMB exchange rate and lessen intervention in the foreign exchange market.

We reflect the impact of currency translation adjustments in our financial statements under the heading “Foreign currency translation gain (loss).” For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 2019 and 2018,2019, we had a positive adjustment of $493,769, a positive adjustment of $1,923,316 and a negative adjustment of $576,743, and $3,015,577 respectively, for foreign currency translations. Very limited hedging transactions are available in China to reduce our exposure to exchange rate fluctuations. To date, we have not entered into any hedging transactions. While we may enter into hedging transactions in the future, the availability and effectiveness of these transactions may be limited, and we may not be able to successfully hedge our exposure at all. In addition, our foreign currency exchange losses may be magnified by China exchange control regulations that restrict our ability to convert RMB into foreign currencies.

Besides, Fluctuation of the Renminbi could materially affect our financial condition and results of operations. The value of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar and other currencies may fluctuate and is affected by, among other things, changes in political and economic conditions. On July 21, 2005, the Chinese government changed its decade-old policy of pegging the value of the Renminbi to the U.S. dollar. Under the new policy, the Renminbi is permitted to fluctuate within a narrow and managed band against a basket of certain foreign currencies. This change in policy has resulted in an appreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar. While the international reaction to the Renminbi revaluation has generally been positive, there remains international pressure on the Chinese government to adopt an even more flexible currency policy, which could result in a further and more rapid appreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar. Any material revaluation of Renminbi may materially and adverselyadversely affect our cash flows, revenues, earnings and financial position, and the value of, and any dividends payable on, our common sharesCommon Shares in U.S. dollars. For example, an appreciation of Renminbi against the U.S. dollar would make any new Renminbi denominated investments or expenditures more costly to us, to the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars into Renminbi for such purposes. See “Exchange Rate Information.”

Since the majority of our operations and assets are located in China, shareholders may find it difficult to enforce a U.S. judgment against the assets of our Company, our directors and executive officers.

Other than REIT US and REIT India, our operations and assets are located in China. In addition, our executive officers and directors are non-residents of the U.S., and substantially all the assets of such persons are located outside the U.S. As a result, it could be difficult for investors to effect service of process in the U.S., or to enforce a judgment obtained in the U.S. against us or any of these persons.

If any dividend is declared in the future and paid in a foreign currency, you may be taxed on a larger amount in U.S. dollars than the U.S. dollar amount that you will actually ultimately receive.

In the event we pay dividends in the future, you will be taxed on the U.S. dollar value of your dividends, if any, at the time you receive them, even if you actually receive a smaller amount of U.S. dollars when the payment is in fact converted into U.S. dollars. Specifically, if a dividend is declared and paid in a foreign currency, the amount of the dividend distribution that you must include in your income as a U.S. holder will be the U.S. dollar value of the payments made in the foreign currency, determined at the spot rate of the foreign currency to the U.S. dollar on the date the dividend distribution is includible in your income, regardless of whether the payment is in fact converted into U.S. dollars. Thus, if the value of the foreign currency decreases before you actually convert the currency into U.S. dollars, you may be taxed on a larger amount in U.S. dollars than the U.S. dollar amount that you will actually ultimately receive.

We may become a passive foreign investment company, which could result in adverse U.S. tax consequences to U.S. investors.

Based on the nature of our business activities, we may be classified as a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”), by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such characterization could result in adverse U.S. tax consequences to you if you are a U.S. investor. For example, if we are a PFIC, a U.S. investor will become subject to burdensome reporting requirements. The determination of whether or not we are a PFIC is made on an annual basis and will depend on the composition of our income and assets from time to time. Specifically, we will be classified as a PFIC for U.S. tax purposes if either:

The calculation of the value of our assets is based, in part, on the then market value of our common shares, which is subject to change. In addition, the composition of our income and assets will be affected by how, and how quickly, we spend the cash we raised in our initial public offering. We cannot assure that we will not be a PFIC for any taxable year. See “Taxation – United States Federal Income Taxation-Passive Foreign Investment Company.”

Introduction of new laws or changes to existing laws by the Chinese government may adversely affect our business.

The Chinese legal system is a codified legal system made up of written laws, regulations, circulars, administrative directives and internal guidelines. Unlike common law jurisdictions such as the U.S., decided cases (which may be taken as precedent) do not form part of the legal structure of China and thus have no binding effect. Furthermore, in line with its transformation from a centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented economy, the Chinese government is still in the process of developing a comprehensive set of laws and regulations. As the legal system in China is still evolving, laws and regulations or their interpretation may be subject to further changes. Such uncertainty and prospective changes to the Chinese legal system could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We may be subject to foreign exchange controls in China, which could limit our use of funds that would be raised in our initial public offering,future offerings, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalTechnology and REIT Yancheng are subject to Chinese rules and regulations on currency conversion. In China, SAFE regulates the conversion of the RMB into foreign currencies. Currently, FIEs are required to apply to SAFE for “Registration of Establishment as FIEs”. Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalTechnology and REIT Yancheng are FIEs, withFIEs. With such registration, Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalTechnology and REIT Yancheng are allowed to open foreign currency accounts including the “current account” and the “capital account”. Currently, conversion within the scope of the “current account” and general “capital account” can be effected without requiring the approval of SAFE. However, conversion of currency in some restricted “capital account” (e.g. for capital items such as direct investments, loans, securities, etc.) still requires the approval of SAFE.

In particular, if Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalTechnology or REIT Yancheng borrow foreign currency through loans from ReTo Eco-Solutions or other foreign lenders, these loans must be registered with SAFE. If Beijing REIT, REIT EcologicalTechnology or REIT Yancheng are financed by means of additional capital contributions, reporting to or filings with certain Chinese government authorities, including MOFCOM, or the local counterparts of SAFE and MOFCOM, must approveSAMR or its local counterparts, in respect of these capital contributions. These restrictions could limit our use of funds which would be raised in our initial public offering,future offerings, which could have an adverse effect on our business.

Governmental control of currency conversion may affect the value of your investment.

The Chinese government imposes controls on the convertibility of the Renminbi into foreign currencies and, in certain cases, the remittance of currency out of China, which may take as long as six months in the ordinary course. We receive the majority of our revenues in Renminbi. Under our current corporate structure, our income is derived from payments from Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng. Shortages in the availability of foreign currency may restrict the ability of Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng to remit sufficient foreign currency to pay dividends or other payments to us, or otherwise satisfy their foreign currency denominated obligations. Under existing Chinese foreign exchange regulations, payments of current account items, including profit distributions, interest payments and expenditures from trade-related transactions, can be made in foreign currencies without prior approval from SAFE by complying with certain procedural requirements. However, approval from appropriate government 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 bank loans denominated in foreign currencies. The Chinese government may also at its discretion restrict access in the future to foreign currencies for current account transactions. If the foreign exchange control system prevents us from obtaining sufficient foreign currency to satisfy our currency demands, we may not be able to pay dividends in foreign currencies to our shareholders. See “Regulations – Regulations on Foreign Currency Exchange and Dividend Distribution.”

Recent changes in China’s labor law restrict our ability to reduce our workforce in China in the event of an economic downturn and may increase our production costs which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

To clarify certain details in connection with the implementation of the Labor Contract Law, the China State Council promulgated the Implementing Rules for the Labor Contract Law on September 18, 2008, which came into effect immediately. The legislation formalized workers’ rights concerning overtime hours, pensions, layoffs, employment contracts and the role of trade unions. Among other things, this new law provides for specific standards and procedures for the termination of an employment contract and places the burden of proof on the employer. In addition, the law requires the payment of a statutory severance pay upon the termination of an employment contract in most cases, including the case of the expiration of a fixed-term employment contract. Further, the law requires an employer to conclude an “employment contract without a fixed-term” with any employee who either has worked for the same employer for 10 consecutive years or more or has had two consecutive fixed-term contracts with the same employer. An “employment contract without a fixed term” can no longer be terminated on the ground of the expiration of the contract, although it can still be terminated pursuant to the standards and procedures set forth under the new law. Because of the lack of precedent for the enforcement of such a law, the standards and procedures set forth under the law in relation to the termination of an employment contract have raised concerns among foreign investment enterprises in China that such an “employment contract without a fixed term” might in fact become a “lifetime, permanent employment contract.” Finally, under the new law, downsizing of either more than 20 people or more than 10% of the workforce may occur only under specified circumstances, such as a restructuring undertaken pursuant to China’s Enterprise Bankruptcy Law, or where a company suffers serious difficulties in production and/or business operations, or where there has been a material change in the objective economic circumstances relied upon by the parties at the time of the conclusion of the employment contract, thereby making the performance of such employment contract not possible. To date, there has been very little guidance or precedent as to how such specified circumstances for downsizing will be interpreted and enforced by the relevant Chinese authorities. All of our employees working for us exclusively within China are covered by the new law and thus, our ability to adjust the size of our operations when necessary in periods of recession or less severe economic downturns may be curtailed. Accordingly, if we face future periods of decline in business activity generally or adverse economic periods specific to our business, this new law can be expected to exacerbate the adverse effect of the economic environment on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our business benefits from certain government subsidies and incentives. Expiration, reduction or discontinuation of, or changes to, these incentives will increase our burden and reduce our net income, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operations.

We have received subsidies from some governmental agencies after meeting certain conditions, such as developing certain technologies, which are chosen as annual key research and development, or obtaining certain technological certifications.

Beijing REIT obtained the Hi-Tech Enterprise Certificate and was entitled to a preferential income tax rate of 15% for 2015 and 2016. The 15% tax rate is less than the standard 25% income tax rate in China. In addition, since the products manufactured by REIT Changjiang qualify as eco-friendly construction materials, 10% of its revenue was exempt from income tax in fiscal 2015. The Company did not receive the similar exemption in fiscal 2017. On December 2, 2019 Beijing REIT obtained the Hi-Tech Enterprise Certificate and was entitled to a preferential income tax rate of 15% for the next 3 years. The estimated tax savings as a result of the Company’s tax benefits for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 amounted to $60,034, $0 and $86,898 respectively. The local Chinese government authorities may reduce or eliminate these incentives through new legislation at any time in the future. In the event Beijing REIT is no longer entitled to receive this tax exemption, its applicable tax rate will increase from 15% to up to 25%, the standard business income tax rate in China. In addition, the termination of one-time subsidies for eco-friendly construction materials could increase the burden of manufacturing and selling these materials in the future. The reduction or discontinuation of any of these economic incentives could negatively affect our business and operations.

Failure to make adequate contributions to the housing provident fund for some of our employees could adversely affect our financial condition and we may be subject to labor disputes or complaints.

Pursuant to the Regulations on Management of Housing Provident Fund (the “Regulations on HPF”) which was promulgated by the State Council on April 3, 1999 and was amended on March 24, 2002, and on March 24, 2019 respectively, PRC enterprises must register with relevant Housing Provident Fund (“HPF”) management center, open special HPF accounts at a designated bank and make timely HPF contributions for their employees. In accordance with the Regulations on HPF, if an enterprise fails to register with HPF or to open special HPF accounts for its employees, it can be ordered by the relevant HPF authority to register and open an account within a certain timeframe, furthermore, the enterprise will be liable for a fine of RMB 10,000 to RMB 50,000 if it fails to comply such an order. Further, if an enterprise fails to pay in full or in part its HPF contributions, such enterprise will be ordered by the HPF enforcement authorities to make such contributions, and may be compelled by the people’s court that has jurisdiction over the matter to make such contributions.

The China Operating Companies are subject to the Regulation on HPF. Accordingly, if the China Operating Companies fail to make adequate HPF contributions for their employees, such failure may give rise to a private cause of action (complaints) by such individual(s) against the relevant China Operating Companies. All of the China Operating Companies have registered with relevant HPF authorities in the PRC (except Dingxuan, REIT Ecological, Horgos Ta-REIT and REIT Yancheng which currently do not have any full-time employees and have not opened an HPF account as of the date of this annual report), but have not made adequate HPF contributions for some of their employees. We estimate the amount of HPF contributions that the applicable China Operating Companies did not make, but should have made for the year ended December 31, 2020 were less than $20,000. As of the date of this annual report, the Company has not received any notice, demand or order from the competent authorities nor any claims or complaints from current or former employees regarding our non-compliance in this regard. In addition, Mr. Li has executed a indemnity agreement in favor of the China Operating Companies on September 30, 2017, pursuant to which he agreed to indemnify the China Operating Companies in full against any losses and penalties that they may suffer as a result of the non-payment of HPF contributions. To the extent any of the China Operating Companies are required to make such payments in full, such payments may have adverse financial or operational impact on the Company. In addition, the China Operating Companies may be subject to labor disputes or complaint from current or former employees.

Labor laws in China may adversely affect our results of operations.

China’s Labor Contract Law imposes significant liabilities on employers and affects the cost of an employer’s decision to reduce its workforce. Further, it requires certain terminations be based upon seniority and not merit. In the event we decide to significantly change or decrease our workforce, the Labor Contract Law could adversely affect our ability to enact such changes in a manner that is most advantageous to our business or in a timely and cost-effective manner, thus materially and adversely affecting our financial condition and results of operations. The Labor Contract Law also mandates that employers provide social welfare packages to all employees, increasing our labor costs. To the extent competitors from outside China are not affected by such requirements, we could be at a comparative disadvantage.

Chinese regulations relating to the establishment of offshore special purpose companies by Chinese residents may subject our Chinese resident shareholders to personal liability and limit our ability to inject capital into our Chinese subsidiaries, limit our subsidiaries’ ability to increase its registered capital, distribute profits to us, or otherwise adversely affect us.

On July 4, 2014, China’s SAFE issued the Circular of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Issues concerning Foreign Exchange Administration over the Overseas Investment and Financing and Round-trip Investment by Domestic Residents via Special Purpose Vehicles, or Circular 37, which became effective as of July 4, 2014. According to Circular 37, prior registration with the local SAFE branch is required for Chinese residents to contribute domestic assets or interests to offshore companies, known as SPVs. Moreover, Circular 37 applies retroactively. As a result, Chinese residents who have contributed domestic assets or interests to a SPV, but failed to complete foreign exchange registration of overseas investments as required before July 4, 2014 shall send a letter to SAFE and its branches for explanation. SAFE and its branches shall, under the principle of legality and legitimacy, conduct supplementary registration, and impose administrative punishment on those in violation of the administrative provisions on the foreign exchange pursuant to the law.

We have requested our shareholders who are Chinese residents to make the necessary applications, filings and amendments as required under Circular 37 and other related rules. We attempt to comply, and attempt to ensure that our shareholders who are subject to these rules comply, with the relevant requirements. However, we cannot provide any assurances that all of our shareholders who are Chinese residents will comply with our request to make or obtain any applicable registrations or comply with other requirements required by Circular 37 or other related rules. The failure or inability of our Chinese resident shareholders to make any required registrations or comply with other requirements may subject such shareholders to fines and legal sanctions and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into or provide loans to (including using the proceeds from our initial public offering) Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng, limiting Beijing REIT, REIT Ecological and REIT Yancheng’s ability to pay dividends or otherwise distributing profits to us.

We may be subject to fines and legal sanctions by SAFE or other Chinese government authorities if we or our employees who are Chinese citizens fail to comply with Chinese regulations relating to employee stock options granted by offshore listed companies to Chinese citizens.

On February 15, 2012, SAFE promulgated the Circular of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Issues Concerning the Administration of Foreign Exchange Used for Domestic Individuals’ Participation in Equity Incentive Plans of Companies Listed Overseas, or Circular 7. Under Circular 7, Chinese citizens who are granted share options by an offshore listed company are required, through a qualified Chinese agent of the offshore listed company, to register with SAFE and complete certain other procedures, including applications for foreign exchange purchase quotas and opening special bank accounts. We and our Chinese employees who have been granted share options are subject to Circular 7. Failure to comply with these regulations may subject us or our Chinese employees to fines and legal sanctions imposed by SAFE or other Chinese government authorities and may prevent us from further granting options under our share incentive plans to our employees. Such events could adversely affect our business operations.

PRC regulations relating to investments in offshore companies by PRC residents may subject our PRC-resident beneficial owners or our PRC subsidiaries to liability or penalties, limit our ability to inject capital into our PRC subsidiaries or limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to increase their registered capital or distribute profits.

SAFE promulgated the Circular on Relevant Issues Concerning Foreign Exchange Control on Domestic Residents’ Offshore Investment and Financing and Roundtrip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles, or the SAFE Circular 37, on July 4, 2014, which replaced the former circular commonly known as “SAFE Circular 75” promulgated by SAFE on October 21, 2005. SAFE Circular 37 requires PRC residents to register with local branches of SAFE in connection with their direct establishment or indirect control of an offshore entity, for the purpose of overseas investment and financing, with such PRC residents’ legally owned assets or equity interests in domestic enterprises or offshore assets or interests, referred to in SAFE Circular 37 as a “special purpose vehicle”. SAFE Circular 37 further requires amendment to the registration in the event of any significant changes with respect to the special purpose vehicle, such as increase or decrease of capital contributed by PRC individuals, share transfer or exchange, merger, division or other material event. In the event that a PRC shareholder holding interests in a special purpose vehicle fails to fulfill the required SAFE registration, the PRC subsidiaries of that special purpose vehicle may be prohibited from making profit distributions to the offshore parent and from carrying out subsequent cross-border foreign exchange activities, and the special purpose vehicle may be restricted in its ability to contribute additional capital into its PRC subsidiary. Moreover, failure to comply with the various SAFE registration requirements described above could result in liability under PRC law for evasion of foreign exchange controls.

We have notified substantial beneficial owners of Common Shares who we know are PRC residents of their filing obligation, and are aware that all substantial beneficial owners have completed the necessary registration with the local SAFE branch or qualified banks as required by SAFE Circular 37. However, we may not at all times be aware of the identities of all of our beneficial owners who are PRC residents. We do not have control over our beneficial owners and cannot assure you that all of our PRC-resident beneficial owners will comply with SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules. The failure of our beneficial owners who are PRC residents to register or amend their SAFE registrations in a timely manner pursuant to SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, or the failure of future beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents to comply with the registration procedures set forth in SAFE Circular 37 and subsequent implementation rules, may subject such beneficial owners or our PRC subsidiaries to fines and legal sanctions. Furthermore, since SAFE Circular 37 was recently promulgated and it is unclear how this regulation, and any future regulation concerning offshore or cross-border transactions, will be interpreted, amended and implemented by the relevant PRC government authorities, we cannot predict how these regulations will affect our business operations or future strategy. Failure to register or comply with relevant requirements may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital to our PRC subsidiaries and limit our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends to our company. These risks may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Failure to comply with the Individual Foreign Exchange Rules relating to the overseas direct investment or the engagement in the issuance or trading of securities overseas by our Chinese resident stockholders may subject such stockholders to fines or other liabilities.

Other than Circular 37, our ability to conduct foreign exchange activities in China may be subject to the interpretation and enforcement of the Implementation Rules of the Administrative Measures for Individual Foreign Exchange promulgated by SAFE in January 2007 (as amended and supplemented, the “Individual Foreign Exchange Rules”). Under the Individual Foreign Exchange Rules, any Chinese individual seeking to make a direct investment overseas or engage in the issuance or trading of negotiable securities or derivatives overseas must make the appropriate registrations in accordance with SAFE provisions. Chinese individuals who fail to make such registrations may be subject to warnings, fines or other liabilities.

We may not be fully informed of the identities of all our beneficial owners who are Chinese residents. For example, because the investment in or trading of our shares will happen in an overseas public or secondary market where shares are often held with brokers in brokerage accounts, it is unlikely that we will know the identity of all of our beneficial owners who are Chinese residents. Furthermore, we have no control over any of our future beneficial owners and we cannot assure you that such Chinese residents will be able to complete the necessary approval and registration procedures required by the Individual Foreign Exchange Rules.

It is uncertain how the Individual Foreign Exchange Rules will be interpreted or enforced and whether such interpretation or enforcement will affect our ability to conduct foreign exchange transactions. Because of this uncertainty, we cannot be sure whether the failure by any of our Chinese resident stockholders to make the required registration will subject our subsidiaries to fines or legal sanctions on their operations, restriction on remittance of dividends or other punitive actions that would have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

You may experience difficulties in effecting service of legal process, enforcing foreign judgments or bringing actions in China against us or our management named in the prospectusannual report based on foreign laws.

We are a company incorporated under the laws of the British Virgin Islands, but we conduct substantially mostall of our operations in China and substantially most of our assets are located in China. In addition, most of our senior executive officers reside within China for a significant portion of the time and most are PRC nationals. As a result, it may be difficult for you to effect service of process upon us or those persons inside mainland China. It may also be difficult for you to enforce in U.S. courts judgments obtained in U.S. courts based on the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws against us and our officers and directors who reside and whose assets are located outside the United States. In addition, there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the British Virgin Islands or the PRC would recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts against us or such persons predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state.

The recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments are provided for under the PRC Civil Procedures Law. PRC courts may recognize and enforce foreign judgments in accordance with the requirements of the PRC Civil Procedures Law based either on treaties between China and the country where the judgment is made or on principles of reciprocity between jurisdictions. China does not have any treaties or other forms of reciprocity with the United States that provide for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. In addition, according to the PRC Civil Procedures Law, the PRC courts will not enforce a foreign judgment against us or our directors and officers if they decide that the judgment violates the basic principles of PRC laws or national sovereignty, security or public interest. As a result, it is uncertain whether and on what basis a PRC court would enforce a judgment rendered by a court in the United States.

Shareholder claims that are common in the United States, including securities law class actions and fraud claims, generally are difficult to pursue as a matter of law or practicality in China. For example, in China, there are significant legal and other obstacles to obtaining information needed for shareholder investigations or litigation outside China or otherwise with respect to foreign entities. Although the local authorities in China may establish a regulatory cooperation mechanism with the securities regulatory authorities of another country or region to implement cross-border supervision and administration, such regulatory cooperation with the securities regulatory authorities in the Unities States have not been efficient in the absence of mutual and practical cooperation mechanism. According to Article 177 of the PRC Securities Law which became effectivetook effect in March 2020, the securities regulatory authority of the PRC State Council may collaborate with securities regulatory authorities of other countries or regions in order to monitor and oversee cross border securities activities. Article 177 further provides thatno overseas securities regulatory authorities are notregulator is allowed to carry outdirectly conduct investigation andor evidence collection directlyactivities within the territory of the PRC. Accordingly, without the consent of the competent PRC securities regulators and that any Chinese entitiesrelevant authorities, no organization or individual may provide the documents and individuals are not allowed to provide documents or materials relatedrelating to securities business activities to overseas agencies without prior consentparties.

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

Wage increases in China may prevent us from sustaining our competitive advantage and could reduce our profit margins.

Labor costs in China have increased with China’s economic development. Rising inflation in China is also putting pressure on wages. Wage costs for our employees form a significant part of our costs. For instance, for the securities regulatory authority of the PRC State Councilyears ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and the competent departments of the PRC State Council. Accordingly, in circumstances relating to a direct investigation or collection of evidence conducted by foreign authorities within the territory of the PRC, the foregoing activities2019, our compensation and benefit costs for our employees were approximately $3.3 million, $3.4 million and $3.2 million, respectively. In addition, we are required by PRC laws and regulations to be conducted through collaboration with or by obtaining prior consent from Chinese authorities. As ofpay various statutory employee benefits, including pensions, housing funds, medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and maternity insurance to designated governmental agencies for the date hereof, we are not aware of any implementing rules or regulations which have been published regarding application of Article 177.

Changes in China’s political and economic policies could harm our business.

Substantially allbenefit of our business operations are conducted in China. Accordingly,employees. We expect that our results of operations, financial conditionlabor costs, including wages and prospects are subjectemployee benefits, will continue to economic, political and legal developments in China. China’s economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including with respectincrease, particularly as we seek to the amount of government involvement, level of development, growth rate, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources.

The Chinese economy has historically been a planned economy subject to governmental plans and quotas and has, in certain aspects, been transitioning to a more market-oriented economy. Although we believe that the economic reform and the macroeconomic measures adopted by the Chinese government have had a positive effect on the economic development China, we cannot predict the future direction of these economic reforms or the effects these measures may have onexpand our business, financial position or results of operations. In addition, the Chinese economy differs fromfuture issuance of equity-based compensation to our professional staff and other employees would also result in additional stock dilution for our shareholders. Unless we are able to pass on these increased labor costs to our customers by increasing prices for our products, services and projects, our profitability and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, the economies of most countries belongingPRC government has promulgated new laws and regulations to enhance labor protections in recent years, such as the Organization for Economic CooperationLabor Contract Law and Development (“OECD”). These differences include, without limitation:

the Social Insurance Law. As a resultthe interpretation and implementation of these differences,new laws and regulations are still evolving, our employment practice may not at all times be deemed in compliance with the new laws and regulations. If we are subject to penalties or incur significant liabilities in connection with labor disputes or investigation, our business and profitability may not developbe adversely affected.

We face risks related to natural disasters, health epidemics and other outbreaks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which could significantly disrupt our operations.

In recent years, there have been outbreaks of epidemics in China and globally, including the outbreak of COVID-19. In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 a pandemic. COVID-19 has resulted in quarantines, travel restrictions, and the temporary closure of businesses and facilities in China and worldwide.

The worldwide outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant disruptions in the same way or atglobal economy. To contain the same rate as might be expected if the Chinese economy were similar to thosespread of the OECD member countries.

Since 1979,COVID-19, the Chinese government has promulgated many new lawstaken certain emergency measures, including extension of the Lunar New Year holidays, implementation of travel bans, blockade of certain roads and regulations covering general economic matters. Despite these efforts to developclosure of factories and businesses, and encouragement of remote working arrangements and cancellation of public activities. Recently, there has been a legal system, China’s systemrecurrence of laws is not yet complete. Even where adequate law existsCOVID-19 outbreaks in certain provinces of China, enforcement of existing laws or contracts based on existing law may be uncertain or sporadic, and it may be difficult to obtain swift and equitable enforcement or to obtain enforcement of a judgment by a court of another jurisdiction. The relative inexperience of China’s judiciary, in many cases, creates additional uncertainty asincluding Shanghai, due to the outcome of any lawsuit. In addition, interpretation of statutesDelta and regulations may be subject to government policies reflecting domestic political changes. Our activities in China will also be subject to administration review and approval by various national and local agencies of the Chinese government. Because of the changes occurring in China’s legal and regulatory structure, we may not be able to secure the requisite governmental approval for our activities. Although we have obtained all required governmental approvals to operate our business as currently conducted, to the extent we are unable to obtain or maintain required governmental approvals, the Chinese government may, in its sole discretion, prohibit us from conducting our business.

If relations between the United States and China worsen, our share price may decrease and we may have difficulty accessing U.S. capital markets.

At various times during recent years, the United States and China have had disagreements over political and economic issues. Controversies may arise in the future between these two countries. Any political or trade controversy between the United States and China could adversely affect the market price of our common shares and our ability to access U.S. capital markets.

The Chinese government could change its policies toward private enterprise or even nationalize or expropriate private enterprises, which couldOmicron variants. As a result, in the total loss of our investment in that country.

Our business is subject to political and economic uncertainties and may be adversely affected by political, economic and social developments in China. Over the past several years, the Chinese government has pursued economic reform policies includingimplemented similar emergency measures to contain further spread of COVID-19.

As it has historically, the encouragement of private economic activity and greater economic decentralization. The Chinese governmentCOVID-19 pandemic may not continue to, pursue these policiesamong other things, (i) disrupt our supply chain, delay our ability to timely fulfill our customer orders and lead to higher fulfilment expenses, (ii) reduce or may alter themcurtail our customers’ expenditures and overall demand for our products or services, and increase the volatility of their purchase patterns from period-to-period, (iii) cause delays in production and collection of accounts receivable, and (iv) require us to take the initiatives in response to COVID-19 and many other efforts to leverage our detriment from timetechnology, products and services to time with little, if any, prior notice.

Changes in policies, laws and regulations or in their interpretation orhelp contain the impositionpandemic, all of confiscatory taxation, restrictions on currency conversion, restrictions or prohibitions on dividend payments to shareholders, devaluations of currency or the nationalization or other expropriation of private enterpriseswhich could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Impact of COVID-19 on Our Operations and Financial Performance.”

Our operations are not located in affected regions, which could however reduce the capacity and efficiency of our operations and negatively impact the normal business operations. Our other measures taken to reduce the impact of this epidemic outbreak included upgrading our telecommuting system, monitoring our employees’ health on a daily basis and optimizing our technology system to support potential growth in user traffic. We continue to monitor the evolving situation and guidance from government and public health authorities and may take additional actions based on their recommendations.

There remains uncertainty around the severity and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and the measures taken, or may be taken, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which will depend on numerous factors, including, among others, the emergence of new cases of COVID-19 and its variants, hospitalization and mortality rates, and the availability and distribution of safe and effective treatments and vaccines.

We are also vulnerable to natural disasters and other calamities. Although we have servers that are hosted in an offsite location and our backup system is able to capture data on a real-time basis, we may still be unable to recover certain data in the event of a server failure. We cannot assure you that any backup systems will be adequate to protect us from the effects of fire, floods, typhoons, earthquakes, power loss, telecommunications failures, break-ins, war, riots, terrorist attacks or similar events. Any of the foregoing events may give rise to server interruptions, breakdowns, system failures, technology platform failures or internet failures, which could cause the loss or corruption of data or malfunctions of software or hardware as well as adversely affect our ability to operate or provide services to our customers.

Any future outbreak of contagious diseases, extreme unexpected bad weather or natural disasters would adversely affect our operations and delivery of our products, services and projects. If there is a recurrence of an outbreak of certain contagious diseases or natural disasters, our operations may materially be affected and the delivery of our products services and projects may be delayed, which may have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.

Our revenue will decrease if the industries in which our customers operate experience a protracted slowdown.

Our customers generally operate in the construction industry. Therefore, we are subject to general changes in economic conditions impacting this segment of the economy. If the construction industry does not grow or if there is a contraction in this industry, demand for our business would decrease. Demand for our business is typically affected by a number of overarching economic factors, including interest rates, environmental laws and regulations, the availability and magnitude of private and governmental investment in infrastructure projects and the health of the overall economy. If there is a decline in economic activity in China or the other markets in which we operate, or there is a protracted slowdown in industries upon which we rely for our sales, demand for our projects and products and our revenue would likewise decrease, which could have a materially adverse effect on our business.

Any decline in the availability or increase in the cost of raw materials could materially impact our earnings.

Our construction material products, manufacturing equipment and projects depend heavily on the ready availability of various raw materials. The availability of raw materials may decline, and their prices may fluctuate greatly. If our suppliers are unable or unwilling to provide us with raw materials on terms favorable to us, we may be unable to produce certain products, equipment or complete projects. The inability to produce certain products or projects for customers could result in a decrease in profit and damage to our corporate reputation. In the event our raw material costs increase, we may not be able to pass these higher costs on to our customers in full or at all.

We rely on a limited number of vendors, and the loss of any significant vendor could harm our business, and the loss of any one of such vendors could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We consider our major vendors to be those vendors that accounted for more than 10% of overall purchases in any given fiscal period. For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, the Company purchased approximately 53%%, 43%, and 25% of its raw materials from one major supplier, respectively. We have not entered into long-term contracts with all of our significant vendors and instead rely on individual contracts with such vendors. Although we believe that we can locate replacement vendors readily on the market for prevailing prices, any difficulty in replacing a vendor on terms acceptable to us could negatively affect our company’s performance to the extent it results in higher prices or a slower supply chain.

We face substantial inventory risk, which if not addressed could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We must order materials for our products and projects and build inventory in advance of production. We typically acquire materials through a combination of purchase orders, supplier contracts and open orders, in each case based on projected demand.

As of December 31, 2021, our inventory from continuing operations was $463,731. Inventory turnover associated with our continuing operations for the fiscal 2021 was 45 days. As our markets are competitive and subject to rapid technology and price changes, there is a risk that we will forecast incorrectly and order or produce incorrect amounts of products or not fully utilize firm purchase commitments. If we were unsuccessful in accurately quantifying appropriate levels of inventory, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

Any disruption in the supply chain of raw materials and our products could adversely impact our ability to produce and deliver products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

In order to optimize our product manufacturing, we must manage our supply chain for raw materials and delivery of our products. Supply chain fragmentation and local protectionism within China further increase supply chain disruption risks. Local administrative bodies and physical infrastructure built to protect local interests may pose transportation challenges for raw material transportation as well as product delivery. In addition, profitability and volume could be negatively impacted by limitations inherent within the supply chain, including competitive, governmental, legal, natural disasters, and other events that could impact both supply and price. Any of these occurrences could cause significant disruptions to our supply chain, manufacturing capability and distribution system that could adversely impact our ability to produce and deliver products. If we are unsuccessful in maintaining efficient operation of our supply chain, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

We do not maintain a reserve for warranty or defective products and installation claims. Our costs could increase if we experience a significant number of claims, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We generally obtain customers’ acceptance when we deliver products, equipment or projects. In practice, we allow our customers to reserve approximately 5-20% of the agreed purchase or installation price as a security retention for a period of one or two years after we deliver or implement a solution. We consider this one or two year term to be a warranty period for our products or projects sold. Historically, we have not experienced significant customer complaints concerning our products or projects, and none of our customers have claimed damages for any loss incurred due to quality problems. In addition to our one to two year reserve, China’s Product Quality Law generally allows customers two years to seek compensation for damages caused by product quality deficiencies in cases in which a product lacks an expiration period.

We expect our customer support teams and our quality assurance and manufacturing monitoring procedures to continue to keep claims at a level that does not support a need for a financial reserve. However, if we experience significant increases in claims or customers’ failure to pay the final 5-20% of a purchase/installation price as a result of quality concerns, our financial results could be adversely affected.

We face certain risks in collecting our accounts receivable, the failure to collect could have a material adverse effect on our business.

As of December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, our net accounts receivable associated with our continuing operations were $535,292 (including accounts receivable from third party customers of $441,703 and accounts receivable from related party customers of $93,589), $3,056,104 (including accounts receivable from third party customers of $2,856,105 and accounts receivable from related party customers of approximately $199,999) and $7,105,948(including accounts receivable from third party customers of $6,636,474 and accounts receivable from related party customers of $469,474), respectively. These amounts represented 15%, 37% and 42% of our total revenues from continuing operations in 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, our accounts receivable turnover associated with our continuing operations was 182, 222 days and 229 days, respectively. 

Although we believe that we have developed a robust receivables management system and have not incurred a situation where an account receivable has become uncollectable, as our business continues to scale, we believe that our accounts receivable balance will continue to grow. This, in turn, increases our risks for bad debts and uncollectible receivables. To the extent we incur additional bad debts and/or uncollectible receivables, our business, financial condition and results of operation may be materially and adversely affected.

Our return on investment in client projects may be different from our projections.

Our return on investment in client projects will take some time to materialize. At the initial stages of project investment and construction, the depreciation of newly added materials and fixed assets will negatively affect our operating results. In addition, the projects may be subject to changes in market conditions during the installation and implementation phases. Changes in industry policy, the progress of the projects, project management, raw materials supply, market conditions and other variables may affect the profitability and the time in which we profit on projects, which may be different from our initial forecast, thus affecting the actual return on investment of the projects.

The sale of our eco-friendly construction materials are subject to geographic market risks, which could adversely affect our revenues and profitability.

Currently, our eco-friendly construction materials are sold in China. Accordingly, we are subject to risks related to the economy of China. In addition to economic conditions, the geographic concentration suggests that regional specific legislation, taxes and disasters such as earthquakes could disproportionately affect us and our financial performance. For example, a downturn in the demand for eco-friendly construction materials or economic conditions in Hainan Province could result in a material decline in our business, financial condition and results of operation.

The report of our independent registered public accounting firm on our financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 includes an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern, and if our business is unable to continue it is likely investors will lose all of their investment.

As discussed in Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements to this annual report, we have suffered significant losses from operations and has a significant decrease in working capital that raises substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our auditor, YCM CPA Inc., has indicated in their report on our financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 that there is a substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for the next 12 months from the issuance of the consolidated financial statements. A “going concern” opinion could impair our ability to finance our operations through the sale of equity, incurring debt, or other financing alternatives.

Management’s plan to alleviate the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern include working to improve our liquidity and capital sources mainly through cash flow from its operations, renewal of bank borrowings, equity or debt offering and borrowing from related parties. In order to fully implement its business plan and recover from continuing losses, we may also seek equity financing from outside investors. At the present time, however, we do not have commitments of funds from any potential investors. There can be no assurance that additional financing, if required, would be available on favorable terms or at all and/or that these plans and arrangements will be sufficient to fund our ongoing capital expenditures, working capital, and other requirements.  If we are unable to achieve these goals, our business will be jeopardized and we may not be able to continue. If we ceased operations, it is likely that all of our investors will lose their investment. 

We cannot assure you that our growth strategy will be successful, which may result in a negative impact on our growth, financial condition, results of operations and cash flow.

We intend to grow by expanding our business, increasing market penetration of our existing products, developing new products and increasing our targeting of domestic and international markets. However, many obstacles to this expansion exist, including increased competition from similar businesses, our ability to improve our products and product mix to realize the benefits of our research and development efforts, unexpected costs and costs associated with marketing efforts. As such, we cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully overcome these potential challenges and establish our business in additional markets. Our inability to implement this growth strategy successfully may have a negative impact on our growth, future financial condition, and results of operations or cash flows.

If we fail to protect our intellectual property rights, it could harm our business and competitive position.

We own an aggregate of 145 patents (ten of which are owned jointly with Luoyang Water-Conservancy Surveying & Design Co., Ltd. (“Luoyang”), an independent third party), two of which were awarded Gold and Silver Prize of International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva. We also have 63 pending patent applications in China. In addition, we own 22 software copyrights in China.  We rely on a combination of patent, trademark and trade secret laws and non-disclosure agreements and other methods to protect our intellectual property rights.

The process of seeking patent protection on future patents can be lengthy and expensive, our patent applications may fail to result in patents being issued, and our existing and future patents may be insufficient to provide us with meaningful protection or commercial advantage. Our patents and patent applications may also be challenged, invalidated or circumvented.

Implementation of Chinese intellectual property-related laws has historically been lacking, primarily because of ambiguities in PRC laws and enforcement difficulties. Accordingly, intellectual property rights and confidentiality protections in China may not be as effective as in the United States or other western countries. Furthermore, policing unauthorized use of proprietary technology is difficult and expensive, and we may need to resort to litigation to enforce or defend patents issued to us or to determine the enforceability, scope and validity of our proprietary rights or those of others. Such litigation and an adverse determination in any such litigation, if any, could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention, which could harm our business and competitive position.

We may be exposed to intellectual property infringement and other claims by third parties which, if successful, could disrupt our business and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our success depends, in large part, on our ability to use and develop our technology and know-how without infringing third party intellectual property rights. We face a high risk of being the subject of claims for intellectual property infringement, invalidity or indemnification relating to other parties’ proprietary rights because we sell our products and manufacturing equipment internationally and litigation is becoming more common in China. Our current or potential competitors, many of which have substantial resources and have made substantial investments in competing technologies, may have or may obtain patents that will prevent, limit or interfere with our ability to make, use or sell our branded products in either China or other countries, including the United States and other countries in Asia. In addition, the defense of intellectual property suits, including patent infringement suits, and related legal and administrative proceedings can be costly, time consuming and may significantly divert the efforts and resources of our technical and management personnel. Furthermore, an adverse determination in any such litigation or proceedings to which we may become a party could cause us to:

Each of these events could effectively prevent us from pursuing some or all of our business and result in our customers or potential customers deferring or limiting their purchase or use of our branded products, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Confidentiality agreements with employees and third parties may not prevent unauthorized disclosure of proprietary information and trade secrets.

In addition to patents, we rely on confidentiality agreements to protect our technical know-how and other proprietary information. In addition, our officers and each of our main technical and management employees have signed a confidentiality agreement. Nevertheless, there can be no guarantee that an employee or a third party will not make an unauthorized disclosure of our proprietary confidential information. This might happen intentionally or inadvertently. It is possible that a competitor will make use of such information, and that our competitive position will be compromised, in spite of any legal action we might take against persons making such unauthorized disclosures.

The use of unqualified individual subcontractors may result in substantial liability.

We, Hainan REIT Construction Project Co., Ltd. (“REIT Construction”) and Beijing REIT Ecological Engineering Technology Co., Ltd. (“Beijing REIT Ecological”) sometimes subcontract portions of our projects to third parties. According to Construction Law and Qualification Standard for Labor Subcontracting in Construction Business of China, individual contractors are not in a position to obtain any qualification of labor subcontracting. Accordingly, contracts subcontracted out by REIT Construction and Beijing REIT Ecological to individual contractors may be declared void and unenforceable by applicable courts. Article 29 of the Construction Law requires that “the overall contractors and subcontractors shall bear joint responsibilities to project owners for the subcontracted projects”. It is possible that we may subcontract projects to individuals or parties without required qualifications. If the construction completed by unqualified individual subcontractors does not meet required quality standards and an accident occurs, we may jointly bear the consequences pursuant to the Article 67 of the Construction Law. Also, according to Article 54 of the Regulation on the Quality Management of Construction Projects, the liabilities for the consequences could be indemnifying the damages and paying a penalty ranging from RMB 500,000 (approximately $72,000) up to RMB 1.0 million (approximately $144,000).

If we experience a significant disruption in, or a breach in security of, our information technology systems or if we fail to implement, manage or integrate new systems, software and technologies successfully, it could harm our business.

Our information technology (“IT”) systems are an integral part of our business. NationalizationWe depend on our IT systems to process transactions, manage logistics, keep financial records, prepare our financial reporting and operate other critical functions. Security breaches, cyber-attacks or expropriationother serious disruptions of our IT systems can create systemic disruptions, shutdowns or unauthorized disclosure of confidential information. If we are unable to prevent or adequately respond to such breaches, attacks or other disruptions, our operations could evenbe adversely affected or we may suffer financial or reputational damage.

In addition, our ability to effectively implement our business plan in a rapidly evolving market requires effective planning, reporting and analytical processes and systems. We are improving and expect that we will need to continue to improve and further integrate our IT systems, reporting systems and operating procedures on an ongoing basis. If we fail to do so effectively, it could adversely affect our ability to achieve our objectives.

Product defects and unanticipated use or inadequate disclosure with respect to our products could adversely affect our business, reputation and financial performance.

Manufacturing or design defects (including in products or components that we source from third parties), unanticipated use of, or inadequate disclosure of risks relating to, the use of products or equipment that we make and sell may lead to personal injury, death or property damage. These events could lead to recalls or alerts relating to our products, result in the removal of a product or equipment from the market or result in product liability claims being brought against us. Product and equipment recalls, removals and liability claims can lead to significant costs, as well as negative publicity and damage to our reputation that could reduce demand for our products and equipment.

Outstanding bank loans may reduce our available funds.

We had approximately $2.4 million in bank loans loan outstanding as of December 31, 2021 (all short-term bank loans). The loans are held at multiple banks, and all of the debt is guaranteed by third-party guaranty companies and certain company officers. There can be no guarantee that we will be able to pay all amounts when due or refinance the amounts on terms that are acceptable to us or at all. If we are unable to make our payments when due or to refinance such amounts, our property could be foreclosed and our business could be negatively affected.

A financial intermediary may have acquired investment funds from investors to invest in our Company’s business before reaching a final mutual agreement with us to obtain such investments, which may subject us to on-going or future litigation, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.

In 2018, a financial intermediary and REIT New Materials Xinyi Co., Ltd. (“Xinyi REIT”) began negotiations towards a potential cooperation where the financial intermediary would introduce potential investors to facilitate investment in Xinyi REIT’s business. In December 2018, an investor invested RMB1,000,000 (approximately $0.15 million) in Xinyi REIT through this financial intermediary. Xinyi REIT rejected this investment and returned the total lossinvestment funds it received to the investor and informed the financial intermediary to cease facilitating investments from other investors. In addition, despite there not being a final mutual agreement between the parties, it appears the financial intermediary may have acquired investment funds in the aggregate amount of RMB15,450,000 (approximately $2.15 million) from certain investors, and Xinyi REIT did not receive any funds from these investments.

Mr. Hengfang Li, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chairman has agreed to assume full responsibility for liabilities, if any, and assume the creditor’s rights for these claims on behalf of the Company for any legal claims or lawsuits against the Company due to these investments. As of the date of this annual report, Xinyi REIT had been involved in one lawsuit as defendant regarding the above investments with the claim amount of RMB 300,000 (approximately $44,000), the total amount of which was repaid by Hengfang Li in May 2020. Accordingly, at this time, the Company believes that any ultimate liability resulting from the outcome of such proceedings, if there are any, will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position or results of operations or liquidity.

However, in the event that Mr. Li personally fails to satisfy any losses related to the investments on our behalf, the Company may face the risk of being sued by the investors and repay related liabilities, which although is remote, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.

Our future growth depends on new products, environmental solutions and new technology innovation, and failure to invent and innovate could adversely impact our business prospects.

Our future growth depends in part on maintaining our competitive advantage with current products in new and existing markets, as well as our ability to develop new products, and technologies to serve such markets. To the extent that competitors develop competitive products, and technologies, or new products, or technologies that achieve higher customer satisfaction, our business prospects could be adversely impacted. In addition, regulatory approvals for new products, equipment or technologies may be required, and these approvals may not be obtained in a timely or cost-effective manner, which could adversely impact our business prospects.

Changes in demand for our products, equipment and business relationships with key customers and suppliers may negatively affect operating results.

To achieve our objectives, we must develop and sell products and equipment that are subject to the demands of our customers. This is dependent on many factors, including managing and maintaining relationships with key customers, responding to the rapid pace of technological change and obsolescence, which may require increased investment by us or result in Chinagreater pressure to commercialize developments rapidly or at prices that may not fully recover the associated investment, and in the total loss of any investment in us.effect on demand resulting from customers’ research and development, capital expenditure plans and capacity utilization. If we are unable to keep up with our customers’ demands, our sales, earnings and operating results may be negatively affected. 

BecauseWe may be unable to deliver our operations are substantially locatedbacklog on time, which could affect future sales and profitability and our relationships with customers.

Our ability to meet customer delivery schedules for backlog is dependent on a number of factors including sufficient manufacturing plant capacity, adequate supply channel access to raw materials and other inventory required for production, an adequately trained and capable workforce, project engineering expertise for certain large projects and appropriate planning and scheduling of manufacturing resources. Many of the contracts we enter into with our customers require long manufacturing lead times. Failure to deliver in China, information aboutaccordance with customer expectations could subject us to contract cancellations and financial penalties, and may result in damage to existing customer relationships and could have a material adverse effect on our operations is not readily available from independent third-party sources.

Because the China Operating Companies are basedbusiness, financial condition and results of operations. We cannot assure you that our backlog will result in China and REIT India will be based in India, our shareholders may have greater difficulty in obtaining information about themrevenue on a timely basis thanor at all, or that any cancelled contracts will be replaced.

Our operations are subject to various hazards that may cause personal injury or property damage and increase our operating costs, and which may exceed the coverage of our insurance.

There are inherent risks to our operations. Our workers are subject to the usual hazards associated with providing services on construction sites, while our plant personnel are subject to the hazards associated with moving and storing large quantities of heavy raw materials and finished products. Operating hazards can cause personal injury and loss of life, damage to or destruction of property, plant and equipment and environmental damage. Although we conduct training programs designed to reduce these risks, we cannot eliminate these risks. We rely on state mandated social insurance for work-related injuries of our employees. However, any claim that exceeds the scope of our insurance coverage, if successful and of sufficient magnitude, could result in the incurrence of substantial costs and the diversion of resources, which could have a material adverse effect on us. In addition, we do not have any business liability, disruption, litigation or property insurance coverage for our operations. Any uninsured occurrence of loss or damage to property, or litigation or business disruption may also materially and adversely affect our ability to operate.

We may incur material costs and losses as a result of claims our products do not meet regulatory requirements or contractual specifications.

Our operations involve providing products that must meet building code or other regulatory requirements and contractual specifications for durability, stress-level capacity, weight-bearing capacity and other characteristics. If we fail or are unable to provide products meeting these requirements and specifications, we may face economic penalties, including price adjustments, rejection of deliveries and/or termination of contracts, and our reputation could be damaged. If a significant product-related claim or claims are made and resolved against us in the future, such resolution may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our operations may incur substantial liabilities to comply with environmental laws and regulations.

Our construction materials manufacturing operations are subject to laws and regulations relating to the release or disposal of materials into the environment or otherwise relating to environmental protection. Our failure to have complied with the applicable laws may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the incurrence of investigatory or remedial obligations and the imposition of injunctive relief. Resolution of these matters may require considerable management time and expense. In addition, changes in environmental laws and regulations occur frequently and any changes that result in more stringent or costly manufacturing, storage, transport, disposal or cleanup requirements could require us to make significant expenditures to reach and maintain compliance and may otherwise have a material adverse effect on our industry in general and on our own results of operations, competitive position or financial condition.

We depend on our key personnel, and our business and growth prospects may be severely disrupted if we lose their services.

Our future success depends heavily upon the continued service of our key executives. In particular, we rely on the expertise and experience of Hengfang Li, our founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. We rely on his industry expertise and experience in our business operations, and in particular, his business vision, management skills, and working relationship with our employees, our other major shareholders, the regulatory authorities, and many of our clients. If he became unable or unwilling to continue in his present position, or if he joined a competitor or formed a competing company in violation of his employment agreement, we may not be able to replace him easily, our business may be significantly disrupted and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially adversely affected.

We do not maintain key man life insurance on any of our senior management or key personnel. The loss of any one of them would shareholdershave a material adverse effect on our business and operations. Competition for senior management and our other key personnel is intense and the pool of suitable candidates is limited. We may be unable to locate a suitable replacement for any senior management or key personnel that we lose. In addition, if any member of our senior management or key personnel joins a competitor or forms a competing company, they may compete with us for customers, business partners and other key professionals and staff members of our Company. Although each of our senior management and key personnel has signed a confidentiality and non-competition agreement in connection with his or her employment with us, we cannot assure that we will be able to successfully enforce these provisions in the event of a U.S.-based company.dispute between us and any member of our senior management or key personnel.

In addition, we compete for qualified personnel with other industry competitors, and we face competition in attracting skilled personnel and retaining the members of our senior management team. These personnel possess technical and business capabilities, including expertise relevant to the construction materials industry, which are difficult to replace. There is intense competition for experienced senior management with technical and industry expertise in the construction materials industry, and we may not be able to retain our key personnel. Intense competition for these personnel could cause our compensation costs to increase, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. Our future success and ability to grow our business will depend in part on the continued service of these individuals and our ability to identify, hire and retain additional qualified personnel. If we are unable to attract and retain qualified employees, we may be unable to meet our business and financial goals.

We have limited business insurance coverage. Any future business liability, disruption or litigation we experience might divert management focus from our business and could significantly impact our financial results.

Availability of business insurance products and coverage in China is limited, and most such products are expensive in relation to the coverage offered. We have determined that the risks of disruption, cost of such insurance and the difficulties associated with acquiring such insurances on commercially reasonable terms make it impractical for us to maintain such insurances. As a result, we do not have any business liability, disruption or litigation insurance coverage for our operations in China. Accordingly, a business disruption, litigation or natural disaster may result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention from our business, which would have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We may require additional financing in the future and our operations could be curtailed if we are unable to obtain required additional financing when needed.

We may need to obtain additional debt or equity financing to fund future capital expenditures. Any additional equity financing may result in dilution to the holders of our outstanding shares of capital stock. Additional debt financing may put us in situations that would restrict our freedom to operate our business, such as situations that:

We cannot guarantee that we will be able to obtain additional financing on terms that are acceptable to us, or any financing at all, and the failure to obtain sufficient financing could adversely affect our business operations.

Potential disruptions in the capital and credit markets may adversely affect our business, including the availability and cost of short-term funds for liquidity requirements, which could adversely affect our results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.

Potential changes in the global economy may affect the availability of business and consumer credit. We may need to rely on the credit markets, particularly for short-term borrowings from banks in China, as well as the capital markets, to meet our financial commitments and short-term liquidity needs if internal funds from our operations are not available to be allocated to such purposes. Disruptions in the credit and capital markets could adversely affect our ability to draw on such short-term bank facilities. Our access to funds under such credit facilities is dependent on the ability of the banks that are parties to those facilities to meet their funding commitments, which may be dependent on governmental economic policies in China. Those banks may not be able to meet their funding commitments to us if they experience shortages of capital and liquidity or if they experience excessive volumes of borrowing requests from us and other borrowers within a short period of time.

Long-term disruptions in the credit and capital markets could result from uncertainty, changing or increased regulations, reduced alternatives or failures of financial institutions could adversely affect our access to the liquidity needed for our business. Any disruption could require us to take measures to conserve cash until the markets stabilize or until alternative credit arrangements or other funding for our business needs can be arranged. Such measures may include deferring capital expenditures, and reducing or eliminating discretionary uses of cash. These events would adversely impact our results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Changes in China’s environmental laws and policies may affect our financial condition.

Our eco-friendly construction materials are primarily used in the construction industry. Our business is in line with China’s current focus on environmental protection policies, specifically the 14^th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025). However, should China alter its environmental policies towards less regulation, we believe demand for our eco-friendly construction materials and equipment will decrease, adversely impacting our results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Our business benefits from certain government subsidies and incentives. Expiration, reduction or discontinuation of, or changes to, these incentives will increase our burden and reduce our net income, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operations.

We have received subsidies from some governmental agencies after meeting certain conditions, such as developing certain technologies, which are chosen as annual key research and development, or obtaining certain technological certifications.

Beijing REIT obtained the High-New Technology Enterprise (“HNTE”) Certificate and is entitled to a preferential income tax rate of 15% for the three years from December 2019 to December 2022. The 15% tax rate is less than the standard 25% income tax rate in China. The estimated tax savings as a result of the Company’s tax benefits for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 amounted to nil, $164,071 and nil, respectively. The local PRC government authorities may reduce or eliminate these incentives through new legislation at any time in the future. In the event Beijing REIT is no longer entitled to receive this tax exemption, its applicable tax rate will increase from 15% to 25%, the standard business income tax rate in China. In addition, the termination of one-time subsidies for eco-friendly construction materials could increase the burden of manufacturing and selling these materials in the future. The reduction or discontinuation of any of these economic incentives could negatively affect our business and operations.

Failure to make adequate contributions to certain employee benefit plans as required by PRC regulations may subject us to penalties. 

 We are required under PRC law to participate in various government sponsored employee benefit plans, including social security insurance, housing provident funds and other welfare-oriented payments, and contribute to the plans in amounts equal to certain percentages of salaries, including bonuses and allowances, of our employees up to a maximum amount specified by the local government from time to time at locations where we operate our businesses. We have not made adequate employee benefit payments to the housing provident fund. We may be required to pay the shortage of our contributions. If we are subject to late fees or fines in relation to the underpaid employee benefits, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

Since the majority of our operations and assets are located in China, shareholders may find it difficult to enforce a U.S. judgment against the assets of our Company, our directors and executive officers.

Other than REIT India, our operations and assets are located in China. In addition, a majority of our executive officers and directors are non-residents of the U.S., and substantially all the assets of such persons are located outside the U.S. As a result, it could be difficult for investors to effect service of process in the U.S., or to enforce a judgment obtained in the U.S. against us or any of these persons.

Substantial uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and implementation of the framework rules of the PRC Foreign Investment Law, and its application may require further rules to be issued by the PRC government, which may incur and increase our compliance costs and expenses and accordingly our financial condition and operation will be adversely affected.

On Mach 15, 2019, the National People’s Congress of China promulgated the Foreign Investment Law of the PRC aiming to replace the major existing laws governing foreign investment in China. The Foreign Investment Law became effective on January 1, 2020. The Foreign Investment Law applies to PRC enterprises established, acquired or otherwise invested wholly or partially by foreign investors in a manner prescribed under applicable PRC laws and regulations. It also governs investment projects and activities in China by foreign investors. Accordingly, as our company qualifies as a “foreign investor” for these purposes, our PRC subsidiaries are subject to the Foreign Investment Law.

Under the Foreign Investment Law, a “negative list’ promulgated or approved by the State Council will set forth industries that are prohibited industries and restricted industries. A foreign investor is prohibited to invest in any prohibited industry included therein. If a foreign investor is found to invest in any prohibited industry set forth under the “negative list”, such foreign investor may be required to, among other aspects, cease its investment activities, dispose of its equity interests in or assets of the “foreign-invested enterprise” (“FIE”) and have its income confiscated. A foreign investor may be permitted to invest in a FIE that is in a restricted industry set forth in the “negative list”, provided that relevant conditions are satisfied and certain approvals are acquired from relevant PRC governmental authorities. With respect to industries in which foreign investment is not prohibited or restricted, domestic and foreign investors will be equally treated. On December 27, 2021, the MOFCOM and the NDRC jointly issued the latest version of Negative List (Edition 2021). See “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview – Regulations — Regulations relating to Foreign Investment — The Guidance Catalogue of Industries for Foreign Investment”. Currently, our business falls within the permitted category. However, we cannot assure you that our current operations or any newly-developed business in the future will still deemed to be “permitted” in the “negative list”, which may be promulgated or be amended from time to time by the MOFCOM and the NDRC.

Some of our PRC subsidiaries are as FIEs. Once an entity is determined to be a FIE and its business operations fall within a restricted industry under the “negative list”, in order for a foreign investor to invest in the FIE, such entity will be required to obtain entry clearance and approvals from the MOFCOM or its local counterparts and other relevant PRC government agencies. Our main products currently manufactured by us, including eco-friendly construction materials and equipment used for the production of these eco-friendly construction materials, do not fall in the prohibited or restricted industries under “negative list” that is currently effective.

The Foreign Investment Law also requires that the entity form, main organizations and business activities of an FIE established before the enactment of the Foreign Investment Law and in accordance with the Chinese-Foreign Equity Joint Venture Enterprise Law, the Chinese-Foreign Cooperative Joint Venture Enterprise Law or the Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprise Law comply with the PRC Company Law, the PRC Partnership Law and other laws (as the case might be) and there is a five-year transition period from January 1, 2020 for FIEs to fully comply with such requirements. See “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview – Regulation – Regulations Relating to Foreign Investment - The Foreign Investment Law.”

The relevant business carried out by our PRC subsidiaries and our investment in the PRC subsidiaries currently are not subject to the national security review under applicable PRC laws and regulations. However, if our future business operations or potential mergers and acquisitions we enter into in the PRC are related to national security sensitive areas or industries involving certain key technologies, national security review requirements will likely apply and the review result that is in compliance with PRC laws should be definitive. It remains unclear when the specific implementation measures of the Foreign Investment Law will be issued by the State Council. Given the uncertainties exist with respect to the interpretation and implementation of the Foreign Investment Law, its application may require further rules to be issued by PRC government, which may incur and increase our compliance costs and expenses and accordingly our financial condition and operation will be adversely affected.

Risks Related to Our Newly Acquired Businesses and Related Industries

The integration of newly acquired businesses may not provide the benefits anticipated at the time of acquisition.

In line with our strategy to expand our operations and services in markets in which we currently operate as well as into new and emerging markets, leveraging our existing know-how and infrastructure, in December 2021, we acquired REIT Mingde, and we may make future acquisitions. We are required to devote management attention and resources to integrating business practices and operations of REIT Mingde. Potential difficulties we may encounter in the integration process include the following:

Furthermore, it is possible that the integration process could result in the loss of key employees or skilled workers of REIT Mingde. The loss of key employees and skilled workers could adversely affect our ability to successfully conduct the newly acquired business because of their experience and knowledge of REIT Mingde’s businesses. In addition, we could be adversely affected by the diversion of management’s attention and any delays or difficulties encountered in connection with the integration of REIT Mingde’s businesses. The process of integrating operations could cause an interruption of, or loss of momentum in, the activities of one or more of our operations. If we experience difficulties with the integration process, the anticipated benefits of the Acquisition may not be realized fully or at all, or may take longer to realize than expected. These integration matters could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition or prospects during this transition period and for an undetermined period after completion of the Acquisition.

We have a limited operating history in the newly acquired businesses and may be unable to achieve or sustain profitability or accurately predict the future results of such businesses.

Hainan Yile IoT commenced the RSA services operations in 2020 and the development and sales of software solutions in May 2019. Because its businesses and the market for its services are both new and evolving, evaluating the current business and its future performance is difficult and based upon limited historical data, a changing market, and its ability to influence the market. This applies to predictions of both revenue and expenses.

Building its businesses to date, Hainan Yile IoT has accumulated losses. The continued investment in new technology and services will add to its operating expenses. We cannot assure you that Hainan Yile IoT will be profitable, that it will be able to sustain profitability, or of the magnitude of its profitability. Our financial performance may be adversely impacted if we fail to address the “Risk Factors” described in this section, or any other risks and challenges that we may face. If its assumptions for addressing the risks that Hainan Yile IoT has identified and other business conditions are incorrect, our plans for operating the business may be impacted and it may not achieve our planned and expected results.

Growing the newly acquired businesses requires us to continue investing in technology, resources, and new business capabilities; these investments may contribute to losses, and we cannot guarantee that any will be successful or contribute to profitability.

Our plans for operating the newly acquired businesses and leading further growth of its RSA services and software solution offerings. These plans include developing new products and services. These investments could contribute to losses, and we cannot guarantee whether or when any of the new products and services will become operational, be successful with customers, or whether they will be profitable.

Any failure to offer high quality services and support may adversely affect our relationships with our customers and prospective customers, and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our software solutions clients depend on our customer support team to assist them in deploying the solutions effectively, to help them to resolve post-deployment issues quickly, and to provide ongoing support. If we do not devote sufficient resources or are otherwise unsuccessful in assisting our customers effectively, it could adversely affect our ability to retain existing customers and could discourage prospective customer from purchasing and using our software solutions. We may be unable to respond quickly enough to accommodate short-term increases in demand for customer support. We also may be unable to modify the nature, scope and delivery of our customer support to compete with changes in the support services provided by our competitors. Increased demand for customer support, without corresponding revenue, could increase costs and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Any failure to maintain high quality customer support, or a market perception that we do not maintain high quality customer support, could erode customer trust and adversely affect our reputation, business, results of operations and financial condition.

The software and information technology service market in which we participate is competitive, and if we do not compete effectively, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be harmed.

The software and information technology service market is competitive and rapidly evolving. The principal competitive factors in our market include completeness of product offerings, level of customization of solutions, credibility with developers, global reach, ease of integration and programmability, product features, platform scalability, reliability, security and performance, brand awareness and reputation, the strength of sales and marketing efforts, customer support, as well as the cost of deploying and using our products.

Some of our existing competitors and potential competitors have larger scale, greater brand name recognition, longer operating histories, more established customer relationships and greater resources than we do. As a result, our competitors may be able to respond more quickly and effectively than we can to new or changing opportunities, technologies, standards or customer requirements. In addition, some competitors may offer products, solutions or services that address one or a limited number of functions at lower prices, with greater depth than our products or in different geographies. Our current and potential competitors may develop and market new products, solutions and services with comparable functionality to ours, and this could force us to decrease prices in order to remain competitive. With the introduction of new products, solutions and services and new market entrants, we expect competition to intensify in the future. In addition, some of our customers may choose to use our products and solutions and our competitors’ products and solutions at the same time.

Hainan Yile IoT receives a substantial portion of its revenues from a limited number of customers, and the loss of, or a significant reduction in usage by, one or more of its customers would result in lower revenues and could harm our business.

Our future success is dependent on establishing and maintaining successful relationships with a diverse set of customers. Hainan Yile IoT currently receives a substantial portion of its revenues from a limited number of customers, i.e. four insurance companies. In the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, total revenues generated from the four insurance company customers accounted for 54.3% and 8.5% of the total revenues of Hainan Yile IoT in the same periods, respectively. It is likely that we will continue to be dependent upon a limited number of customers for a significant portion of our revenues for the foreseeable future and, in some cases, the portion of our revenues attributable to one single customer may increase in the future. The loss of one or more significant customers or a reduction in usage by any significant customers would reduce our revenues. If we fail to maintain existing customers or develop relationships with new customers, our business would be harmed.

We operate in an emerging and evolving markets. If our market does not grow as we expect, or if we fail to adapt and respond effectively to rapidly changing technology, evolving industry standards, changing regulations, and changing customer needs, requirements or preferences, our products and solutions may become less competitive.

The software and information technology service market in China is at an early stage of development. There are uncertainties over the size and rate at which this market will grow, as well as whether our solutions and products will be widely adopted. Moreover, the industry is subject to rapid technological change, evolving industry standards, changing regulations, as well as changing customer needs, requirements and preferences. The success of our business will depend, in part, on our ability to adapt and respond effectively to these changes on a timely basis. If we are unable to develop new solutions and products that satisfy our customers and provide enhancements and new features for our existing products that keep pace with rapid technological and industry change, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected. If new technologies emerge that are able to deliver competitive products and services at lower prices, more efficiently, more conveniently or more securely, such technologies could adversely impact our ability to compete effectively.

Our solutions must also integrate with a variety of network, hardware, software platforms and technologies, and we need to continuously modify and enhance our products and solutions to adapt to changes and innovation. For example, if customers adopt new software platforms or infrastructure, we may be required to develop new versions of our products to be compatible with those new software platforms or infrastructure. This development effort may require significant resources, which would adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Any failure of our products and solutions to operate effectively with evolving or new software platforms and technologies could reduce the demand for our products and solutions. If we are unable to respond to these changes in a cost-effective manner, our products and solutions may become less marketable and less competitive or obsolete, and our business, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Security incidents and attacks on our products or solutions could lead to significant costs and disruptions that could harm our business, financial results, and reputation.

Our business is dependent on providing our customers with safe, reliable and high-quality software solutions. Maintaining the security and availability of our systems, network, and the security of information we hold is a critical issue for us and our customers. Attacks on our customers and our own network are frequent and take a variety of forms. Malicious actors can attempt to fraudulently induce employees or suppliers to disclose sensitive information through spamming, phishing, or other tactics. We may be subject to cyber-attacks from third parties. If attacks like these were to occur in the future and if we do not have the systems and processes in place to respond to them, our business could be harmed.

The costs incurred by us to avoid or alleviate cyber or other security problems and vulnerabilities may be significant. However, our efforts to address these problems and vulnerabilities may not be successful. Any significant breach of our security measures could:

The occurrence of any of these events could harm our business or damage our brand and reputation, lead to customer credits, loss of customers, higher expenses, and possibly impede our present and future success in retaining and attracting new customers. Security incidents or attacks on our infrastructure would be damaging to our reputation and could harm our business.

Similar security risks exist with respect to our business partners and our third-party suppliers for information technology support services and administrative functions. As a result, we are subject to the risk that cyber-attacks on our business partners and third-party suppliers may adversely affect our business even if an attack or breach does not directly impact our systems. It is also possible that security breaches sustained by our competitors could result in negative publicity for our entire industry that indirectly harms our reputation and diminishes demand for our platform.

A significant portion of our revenues were derived from customers in the insurance industry. The intensifying competition, change in sector trend and landscape and government policies may have a direct impact on the insurance industry and negatively affect the stability of our clients, which may subsequently have negative impact on our business.

A significant portion of our revenues were derived from insurance companies in Hainan province. Any change in the competitive landscape, market trend or user behaviors in such sector may have a negative impact on our customers, thus harm their ability to make payments and maintain and increase the usage of our services. In addition, the insurance industry in China is highly regulated by the PRC government and numerous regulatory authorities of the central PRC government are empowered to issue and implement regulations governing various aspects of the industry. As the laws and regulations are evolving and some of them are relatively new, changes to the current laws and regulations may harm our business and results of operation. In addition, interpretation and enforcement of such laws and regulations involve significant uncertainty. As a result, in certain circumstances it may be difficult to determine what actions or omissions may be deemed to be in violations of applicable laws and regulations. If these laws and regulations or the uncertainty associated with their interpretation negatively impact the insurance industry where our customers operate, our business may be adversely affected as well.

Changes in practices of insurance companies in the markets in which we provide, and sell, our SVR and RSA and emergency home repair products services could adversely affect our revenues and growth potential.

We depend on the practices of insurance companies in the markets in which we provide our RSA services. The majority of our RSA customers are insurance companies, which in turn sell our RSA services to their policy holders as policy benefits. Other customers of our RSA services are drivers without any insurance coverage for RSA services. Therefore, we rely on insurance companies’ continued practice of offering RSA services as benefits under its policies and accepting our RSA services. 

If any of these policies or practices change, for regulatory or commercial reasons, or if market prices for these services fall, revenues from our RSA services could decline, which could adversely affect our revenues and growth potential.

Defects or errors in our products or solutions could diminish demand for our products or solutions, harm our business and results of operations willand subject us to liability.

Our customers use our products or solutions for important aspects of their businesses, and any errors, defects or disruptions to our products and solutions and any other performance problems with our products or solutions could damage our customers’ businesses and, in turn, hurt our brand and reputation. We provide regular updates to our products or solutions, which have in the past contained, and may in the future contain, undetected errors, failures, vulnerabilities and bugs when first introduced or released. Real or perceived errors, failures or bugs in our products or solutions could result in negative publicity, loss of or delay in market acceptance of our products or solutions, loss of competitive position, lower customer retention or claims by customers for losses sustained by them. In such an event, we may be required, or may choose, for customer relations or other reasons, to expend additional resources in order to help correct the problem. In addition, we do not carry insurance to compensate us for any losses that may result from claims arising from defects or disruptions in our products. As a result, our reputation and our brand could be harmed, and our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.

In addition, our solutions and products must interoperate with our customers’ existing internal networks and infrastructure. These complex internal systems are developed, delivered, and maintained by the customer and a myriad of vendors and service providers. As a result, the components of our customers’ infrastructure have different specifications, rapidly evolve, utilize multiple protocol standards, include multiple versions and generations of products, and may be highly customized. We must be able to interoperate and provide products to customers with highly complex and customized internal networks, which requires careful planning and execution between our customers, our customer support teams and, in some cases, our channel partners. Further, when new or updated elements of our customers’ infrastructure or new industry standards or protocols are introduced, we may have to update or enhance our technologies and infrastructure to allow us to continue to provide our products or solutions to customers. Our competitors or other vendors may refuse to work with us to allow their products to interoperate with our products and solutions, which could make it difficult for our products and solutions to function properly in customer internal networks and infrastructures that include these third-party products.

We may not deliver or maintain interoperability quickly or cost-effectively, or at all. These efforts require capital investment and engineering resources. If we fail to maintain compatibility of our solutions and products with our customers’ internal networks and infrastructures, our customers may not be able to fully utilize our solutions and products, and we may, among other consequences, lose or fail to increase our market share and experience reduced demand for our products or solutions which would materially harm our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

We face challenges from the evolving regulatory environment and user attitude toward data privacy and protection. Actual or alleged failure to comply with data privacy and protection laws and regulations could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

We operate in the regulatory environment in which data privacy and protection is evolving. We cannot assure you that relevant governmental authorities will not interpret or implement the laws or regulations in ways that negatively affect the software and information technology service industry, our clients and us. Regulatory investigations, restrictions, penalties and sanctions, whether targeted at us or not, may negatively affect the market environment in which we operate, our existing or potential clients, and our products and services, which may in turn have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. It is also possible that we may become subject to additional or new laws and regulations regarding data privacy and protection in connection with the data we have access to and the data products and services we provide to our clients. Moreover, we may become subject to regulatory requirements as a result of utilization of our products and services by residents of, or travelers who visit, certain jurisdictions, such as the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, or the GDPR. Complying with additional or new regulatory requirements could force us to incur substantial costs or require us to change our business practices. Moreover, if a high profile security breach occurs with respect to our competitors, people may lose trust in the security of software solutions providers generally, including us, which could damage the reputation of the industry, result in heightened regulation and strengthened regulatory enforcement and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our business partners and customers may be subject to regulations related to the handling and transfer of certain types of sensitive and confidential information. Any failure of our partners or customers to comply with applicable laws and regulations would harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our business partners and customers that use our products may be subject to privacy- and data protection-related laws and regulations that impose obligations in connection with the collection, processing and use of personal data, financial data, health data or other similar data.

Any failure or perceived failure by our business partners or customers to comply with applicable laws and regulations could result in their reputational damage or governmental investigations, inquiries, enforcement actions and prosecutions, private litigation, fines and penalties or adverse publicity, which may harm our business partnership and have a negative impact on our business.

We could be harmed by data loss or other security breaches.

Because we process, store, and transmit data, including personal information, failure to prevent or mitigate risks of data loss or other security breaches, including breaches of our vendors’ or customers’ technology and systems, could expose us or our customers to a risk of loss or misuse of such information, adversely affect our operating results, result in litigation or potential liability for us, deter customers from using our products and services, and otherwise harm our business and reputation. We use third-party technology and systems for a variety of reasons, including, without limitation, encryption and authentication technology, employee email, content delivery to customers, back-office support, and other functions. Some of our systems have experienced past security breaches, and, although they did not have a material adverse effect on our operating results, there can be no assurance of a similar result in the future. Although we have developed systems and processes that are designed to protect customer information and prevent data loss and other security breaches, including systems and processes designed to reduce the impact of a security breach at a third-party vendor or customer, such measures cannot provide absolute security. Moreover, in the event of a major system disruption, hardware malfunction or damages to data centers and servers caused by technologies failures, natural disasters or man-made problems, we may experience significant loss of data which would materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Changes in laws and regulations related to the internet or changes in the internet infrastructure itself may diminish the demand for our products and solutions, and could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The future success of our business depends upon the continued use of the internet as a primary medium for commerce, communications and business applications. PRC or foreign government bodies or agencies have in the past adopted, and may in the future adopt, laws or regulations affecting the use of the internet as a commercial medium. Changes in these laws or regulations could require us to modify our products and solutions in order to comply with these changes. In addition, government agencies or private organizations have imposed and may impose additional taxes, fees or other charges for accessing the internet or commerce conducted via the internet. These laws or charges could limit the growth of internet-related commerce or communications generally, or result in reductions in the demand for internet-based products and services such as our products and solutions. In addition, the use of the internet as a business tool could be adversely affected due to delays in the development or adoption of new standards and protocols to handle increased demands of internet activity, security, reliability, cost, ease-of-use, accessibility and quality of service. The performance of the internet and its acceptance as a business tool has been adversely affected by “viruses,” “worms,” and similar malicious programs. If the use of the internet is reduced as a result of these or other issues, then demand for our products or solutions could decline, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our services rely on the stable performance of servers, and any disruption to our servers due to internal and external factors could diminish demand for our products or solutions, harm our business, our reputation and results of operations and subject us to liability.

We rely in part upon the stable performance of our servers for provision of our solutions, products and services. Any disruption to our servers may happen due to internal and external factors, such as inappropriate maintenance, defects in the servers, cyber-attacks targeted at us, occurrence of catastrophic events or human errors. Such disruption could result in negative publicity, loss of or delay in market acceptance of our solutions and products, loss of competitive position, lower customer retention or claims by customers for losses sustained by them. In such an event, we may need to expend additional resources to help with recovering. In addition, we may not carry insurance to compensate us for any losses that may result from claims arising from disruption in servers. As a result, our reputation and our brand could be harmed, and our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.

Our use of open source or third-party software could negatively affect our ability to sell our products and solutions, and subject us to possible litigation.

Our products and solutions incorporate open source software, and we expect to continue to incorporate open source software in our products and solutions in the future. Courts have interpreted few of the licenses applicable to open source software, and there is a risk that these licenses could be construed in a manner that could impose unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to commercialize our products and solutions. Moreover, although we have implemented policies to regulate the use and incorporation of open source software into our products and solutions, we cannot be certain that we have not incorporated open source software in our products or solutions in a manner that is inconsistent with such policies. If we or our employees fail to comply with open source licenses, we may be subject to certain requirements, including requirements that we offer our products that incorporate the open source software for no cost, that we make available source code for modifications or derivative works we create based upon, incorporating or using the open source software and that we license such modifications or derivative works under the terms of applicable open source licenses. If an author or other third party that distributes such open source software were to allege that we had not complied with the conditions of one or more of these licenses, we could be required to incur significant legal expenses defending against such allegations and could be subject to significant damages, enjoined from generating revenues from customers using products that contained the open source software and required to comply with onerous conditions or restrictions on these products. In any of these events, we and our customers could be required to seek licenses from third parties in order to continue offering our products and solutions and to re-engineer our products or solutions or discontinue offering our products to customers in the event re-engineering cannot be accomplished on a timely basis. Any of the foregoing could require us to devote additional research and development resources to re-engineer our products or solutions, could result in customer dissatisfaction and may adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We could incur substantial costs in protecting or defending our intellectual property rights, and any failure to protect our intellectual property could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our success depends, in part, on our ability to protect our brand and the proprietary methods and technologies that we develop under patent and other intellectual property laws in China so that we can prevent others from using our inventions and shareholdersproprietary information. As of the date of this prospectus, we have registered 28 patents, 55 pending patent applications, 38 trademarks, 14 software copyrights, and ten domain names in China related to our newly acquired businesses. There can be no assurance that any patents that have been issued or that may be issued in the future will provide significant protection for our intellectual property. If we fail to protect our intellectual property rights adequately, our competitors might gain access to our technology and our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected. There can be no assurance that the particular forms of intellectual property protection that we seek, including business decisions about when to file trademark applications and patent applications, will be adequate to protect our business. We may have difficultyto spend significant resources to monitor and protect our intellectual property rights. Litigation may be necessary in obtainingthe future to enforce our intellectual property rights, determine the validity and scope of our proprietary rights or those of others, or defend against claims of infringement or invalidity. Such litigation could be costly, time-consuming and distracting to management, result in a diversion of significant resources, the narrowing or invalidation of portions of our intellectual property and have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights may be met with defenses, counterclaims and countersuits attacking the validity and enforceability of our intellectual property rights or alleging that we infringe the counterclaimant’s own intellectual property. Any of our patents, copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property rights could be challenged by others or invalidated through administrative process or litigation.

We also rely, in part, on confidentiality agreements and non-compete agreements with our business partners, employees, consultants, advisors, customers and others in our efforts to protect our proprietary technology, processes and methods. These agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of our confidential information, about from sourcesand it may be possible for unauthorized parties to copy our software or other thanproprietary technology or information, or to develop similar software independently with us lacking an adequate remedy for unauthorized use or disclosure of our confidential information. In addition, others may independently discover our trade secrets and proprietary information, and in these cases we would not be able to assert any trade secret rights against those parties. Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the companies themselves. Information available from newspapers,scope of our proprietary rights, and failure to obtain or maintain trade journals,secret protection could adversely affect our competitive business position. In addition, to the extent we expand our international activities, our exposure to unauthorized copying, transfer and use of our proprietary technology or local, regionalinformation may increase.

We cannot be certain that our means of protecting our intellectual property and proprietary rights will be adequate or national regulatory agencies such as issuance of construction permits and contract awards for development projectsthat our competitors will not independently develop similar technology. If we fail to meaningfully protect our intellectual property and proprietary rights, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be readily available to shareholders and, where available, will likely be available only in Chinese. Shareholders will be dependent upon management for reports of their progress, development, activities and expenditure of proceeds.adversely affected.

Chinese economicThe estimates of market opportunity, forecasts of market growth slowdownincluded in this prospectus may cause negative effectprove to be inaccurate, and any real or perceived inaccuracies may harm our reputation and negatively affect our business.

Since 2010, Even if the annualmarket in which we compete achieves the forecasted growth, rate of the Chinese economy has declined, from approximately 10.3% gross domestic product in 2010 to 6.1% in 2019. This situation has impacted many types of service industries, such as restaurant and tourism, and some manufacturing industries. Our business operations in China rely primarily on the construction industry, which is influenced by economic growth slowdowns. If China’s economic growth continues to slow down, then our business could fail to grow at similar rates, if at all.