US regulators to vet Alibaba, JD.com, other Chinese firms’ audits HONG KONG: US regulators have selected e-commerce majors Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and JD.com Inc among other US-listed Chinese companies for audit inspection starting next month, people with knowledge of the matter said. The selection follows a landmark audit deal between Beijing and Washington on Friday allowing US regulators to vet accounting firms in mainland China and Hong Kong, potentially ending a long-running dispute that threatened to boot more than 200 Chinese companies from US stock exchanges. The tech duo along with Yum China Holdings Inc - owner of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut restaurants in China - have been notified that they are among the first batch of Chinese companies whose audits will be inspected in Hong Kong by US audit watchdog, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), the people told Reuters, declining to be identified due to confidentiality constraints. The respective accounting firms of Alibaba, JD.com and Yum China - PwC, Deloitte and KPMG - have also been notified of the inspection, the people added.