Founded in 1985, Shenyang Cuihua Gold and Silver Jewelry Co., Ltd. is mainly engaged in the R&D, design, production and sales of jewellery including gold, platinum, diamond and jadeite. Its brand “Cuihua” originated from Cuihua Gold Shop established in the 21st year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty, and is one of the first batches of China Time-honored Brands certified by the Ministry of Commerce. In 2009, the company set up a subsidiary and jewellery R&D centre in Shenzhen to roll out its national business layout. It was listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in 2014.
The jewellery player’s foray into lithium salt stemmed from a pivotal shift.
In June 2022, Cuihua Jewelry issued an announcement: former controlling shareholder Cuiyi Investment signed a Share Transfer Agreement with Chen Siwei, under which Cuiyi Investment planned to transfer a 12% stake in the listed firm to Chen Siwei. Meanwhile, the original actual controller and its concerted action parties signed voting rights waiver agreements to waive voting rights attached to a combined 19.38% of shares. Upon completion of the transaction, Chen Siwei obtained control of Cuihua Jewelry.
Public information shows that Chen Siwei previously worked at lithium salt-related enterprises including Sichuan Guoli Lithium Materials and Aba Gaoyuan Lithium, and he is also the actual controller of Sterry Lithium.
In November 2022, Cuihua Jewelry disclosed a related-party transaction announcement, proposing to acquire a 51% stake in Sichuan Sterry Lithium for RMB 612 million in cash, officially entering the lithium salt track. In August 2023, Sterry Lithium completed industrial and commercial change registration and became a controlled subsidiary of Cuihua Jewelry, consolidated into the listed company’s financial statements. Cuihua Jewelry thus formed a dual-main-business structure covering jewellery and lithium salts. According to its announcement, the acquisition aimed to strengthen its core jewellery business while expanding into the new energy lithium battery sector, diversify business and lift the listed firm’s competitiveness.
Sterry Lithium focuses on the R&D, production and sales of lithium salt products. Its core products include lithium hydroxide (anhydrous lithium hydroxide included), lithium carbonate and lithium dihydrogen phosphate, which are critical raw materials for cathode materials of lithium-ion batteries such as ternary materials, lithium iron phosphate and lithium cobalt oxide.
Nevertheless, lithium prices entered a sustained downtrend from 2023. Hit by sharp declines in lithium salt prices, Sterry Lithium failed to meet its performance commitments and posted substantial losses for consecutive periods. Figures from Cuihua Jewelry’s filings show Sterry Lithium recorded a net loss of RMB 186 million in 2023 and RMB 65.0977 million in 2024. Losses persisted into H1 2025, when its net loss reached RMB 6.4526 million.
Notably, as per the announcement, the direct trigger for *ST Cuihua’s delisting is its failure to release the 2025 annual report within the statutory time limit. Still, operational and capital pressures brought by this cross-sector expansion formed the key backdrop for escalating risks.
Stricken by tight capital and liquidity shortages, multiple bank loans of *ST Cuihua and its subsidiaries fell overdue. As of February 6, 2026, the overdue principal of loans from financial institutions for *ST Cuihua and certain subsidiaries totalled RMB 254 million.
On February 9, 2026, *ST Cuihua received a Case Filing Notice from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) over suspected illegal information disclosure.
In August 2026, the listed company announced that Chen Siwei, its actual controller, and Guo Yingjie, concerted action party of shareholders holding over 5% shares, each received CSRC case filing notices for suspected violations in information disclosure.
