US agrees to remove Xiaomi from controversial deny list (Updated: It's done)

Update: May 26 2021 (3 AM ET): A US court has now issued a final order vacating Xiaomi’s designation as a Communist Chinese Military Company.

“In vacating the designation, the court formally lifts all restrictions on US persons’ ability to purchase or hold securities of the company,” Xiaomi explained on its blog.

Original article: May 12 2021 (3:17 AM ET): The US government and Xiaomi have reportedly come to an agreement that will see the Chinese firm removed from a US deny list.

According to a filing in the US courts (spotted by Bloomberg), the US Department of Defense has now affirmed that a final order removing Xiaomi from the deny list “would be appropriate.”

“The Parties have agreed upon a path forward that would resolve this litigation without the need for contested briefing,” read an excerpt of the filing, according to the outlet. It’s believed that specific terms are being negotiated and that a joint proposal will be issued on May 20.

Xiaomi was added to a deny list by the Trump administration in early January, accusing it of being a “Communist Chinese Military Company.” This listing would’ve meant that US investors couldn’t invest in Xiaomi and would’ve seen it being delisted from US exchanges.

The Chinese manufacturer has maintained that it’s an independent, publicly traded company, and won a temporary injunction against the deny listing in March. Xiaomi told Android Authority in response to the news that it was “paying close attention to the development of this issue.”

This wouldn’t be the only good news for Xiaomi this month, as a recent smartphone market-share report found that it passed Apple for the number two spot in Europe in Q1 2021.