(Yicai) Dec. 18 -- Tencent Holdings has tightened its rules on streamers who produce financial content on WeChat to stop them from sharing speculative stock advice.

Livestreamers are no longer allowed to give specific investment advice and those who make content about financial topics such as stocks, bonds, funds, banks, insurance, and trusts need to work for financial institutions and appear in person on the shows, Securities Daily reported today, citing the new rules that came into effect today.

Online performers need to apply for licenses, valid for one year, on the social media platform to host finance shows. WeChat requires them to reveal their identity and company information in the room.

Industry insiders said that the new rules will impact livestreamers so that they are no longer allowed to predict the capital market performance of certain industries nor make conclusions about the future outlook. It is also banned to show any candlestick charts or analyze stock figures or trends, they added.

An industry insider said that the changes are disrupting business models as many performers need to revamp their formats due to the restriction on candlestick charts. However, the biggest impact will be on investment advisors and non-licensed practitioners as brokerages are already regulated, insiders predict.

A person in charge of streaming at a medium-sized brokerage said that some brokerages could suspend their shows while the industry is studying the new rules.

Editors: Shi Yi, Emmi Laine