A screenshot of a "Zeping Macro VIP Group" member reportedly suffering losses exceeding 10 million yuan has recently circulated online, drawing market attention.

The screenshot shows a paying member who fully invested with margin financing in memory chip stocks, leading to a margin call and losses of over 10 million yuan. Subsequently, Ren Zeping issued statements via his public WeChat account and during a livestream, claiming he "never recommended stocks" and "repeatedly warned against using leverage."

Can Ren Zeping's "no stock recommendation" disclaimer offer legal protection? How compliant is the operational model of the "VIP paid group"? What are the boundaries for financial influencers offering investment advice?

Ren Zeping Responds to Member's Margin Call: Claims He Never Recommended Stocks and Repeatedly Warned Against Leverage

The online screenshot indicates that a paying member of "Zeping Macro VIP Group 30" fully invested with margin financing in memory chip stocks, suffering a margin call and losses exceeding 10 million yuan.

In response to this circulating information, Ren Zeping issued a statement on the evening of July 19 via his WeChat public account "Zeping Macro." The statement said that after verification, the member joined on July 1, attended their first course on July 8, and had only been a member for one to two weeks.

Ren Zeping stated that the member had opened a margin account in 2024 and had a history of long-term leveraged investments prior to joining. The member reportedly admitted that the team never recommended specific stocks and that they made their own asset allocation and leveraged decisions. The statement also claimed that over the past six months, in public livestreams and member courses, warnings were given "more than a hundred times not to use leverage, not to take on debt, and not to trade frequently."

On July 20, Ren Zeping further explained during a livestream that the member had opened a stock account in 2011 and had been using leveraged trading for tech stocks long before joining the membership, stating, "It wasn't because of my views that he used leverage." He added that the member acknowledged these warnings but chose to proceed with leveraged operations.

Ren Zeping also emphasized that the course is positioned as macroeconomic analysis and investment methodology sharing, not involving individual stock recommendations or specific operational guidance. In his statement, he said that legal letters are on the way for those spreading malicious rumors not based on facts, urging the public to comment objectively based on facts.

VIP Group Notifications Halted, But Courses Still Available for Purchase

Following the incident, Ren Zeping's team has stopped sending notifications through the VIP WeChat group. According to information provided by Zeping Macro's official customer service to The Paper, "Due to individuals using our groups to send false information and links, to protect members' rights and enhance experience, we will no longer use groups for information notifications. Membership benefits are still being delivered normally."

An investigation by The Paper found that the 2,980 yuan annual VIP membership for Zeping Macro has been removed from Douyin and Xiaohongshu platforms but remains available for purchase on WeChat Mini Programs.

A member who applied for a refund told The Paper that they only provided their registered phone number to customer service, and the refund was processed in about three minutes without being asked for a reason or incurring any fees. After the refund, when re-entering the mini-program course page, it displayed "No access to [Zeping Macro], please copy the information and contact the store administrator for inquiries," and they could no longer view course content.

The member mentioned they were in "Group 52," and observed that each WeChat group had about 500 people. During their livestream viewings, they did not notice any display of a securities investment advisory license number on the streaming page.

Terms and conditions state that "lifetime membership" has a service period of ten years. Refunds within the first three months incur no penalty, but fees are deducted proportionally for consumed benefits and gifts (a bull figurine valued at 700 yuan, a single study tour valued at 6,800 yuan). Refunds after three months are subject to a 20% penalty on the remaining balance.

In addition to the 2,980 yuan annual membership, courses available on the WeChat Mini Program include "How to Choose Growth Stocks" (899 yuan), "How to Do Value Investing" (899 yuan), "Premium Research Reports" (1,999 yuan), and "Livestream Zone" (1,199 yuan).

An investor who purchased the Zeping Macro VIP membership told The Paper that they joined in June for 2,980 yuan, saying, "I didn't trade stocks before, but I started buying tech stocks after following Ren Zeping."

The investor stated that Ren Zeping mentioned in the course that July would bring mid-report season rallies and a major uptrend, saying, "A bull market pullback is a rare opportunity." The investor heavily entered the market in July and is currently down about 30%.

"Chatting is forbidden in the group; we're not allowed to discuss stocks. Usually, teaching assistants post course notifications, and customer service shares links in the group," the investor said, adding that they were unsure if a refund was possible at the time of the interview. Regarding Ren Zeping's claims of "multiple warnings against using leverage," the investor noted that their impression was that the course focused more on the long-term logic of technology, with less emphasis on risk warnings.

Another member who completed a refund told The Paper that they could no longer access course content after the refund and received no further notifications about courses or the community.

Can the "No Stock Recommendation" Disclaimer Provide Legal Protection?

Regarding whether Ren Zeping is liable for the paying member's investment losses, The Paper interviewed several lawyers.

Wang Zhibin, a securities litigation lawyer at Shanghai Minglun Law Firm, told The Paper that disclaimers hold some legal significance but do not automatically exempt one from all legal liability. Regulatory and judicial authorities typically follow the "substance over form" principle when determining the nature of such activities, focusing more on the actual content of the courses, service methods, and whether they had a specific impact on investor decisions, rather than the disclaimer itself.

"Normal knowledge payment should primarily revolve around general knowledge such as economic theory, industry research frameworks, and financial analysis methods, without the aim of assisting investors in making specific trading decisions. If courses, membership communities, or similar forms continuously provide securities investment analysis, predictions, or advice, it may cross the boundary of knowledge sharing," Wang Zhibin pointed out.

Wang further noted that in judicial and regulatory practice, determining whether an activity constitutes securities investment advisory services does not solely depend on whether individual stocks are recommended. It considers a combination of factors, including course content, fee structure, whether services are continuously provided to specific members, whether interactive Q&A or individual stock reviews are involved.

Xu Feng, Chief Partner at Shanghai Jiucheng Law Firm, told The Paper that this requires very specific evidence, not just general opinions and statements from the parties involved.

Li Meiyun, a full-time lawyer at Shanghai Minglun Law Firm, analyzed for The Paper that although Ren Zeping packages his business model as a "VIP information group," the purpose indicates that members pay fees to obtain Ren Zeping's analysis of individual stocks to guide their own trading decisions, and Ren Zeping aims to collect annual fees by continuously providing trading guidance. This relationship essentially constitutes a securities investment advisory service contract.

"However, Ren Zeping's registration with the Securities Association of China has been cancelled, and he lacks securities investment advisory qualifications, violating mandatory provisions of the Securities Law. The contract should be deemed invalid, and members could claim a full refund of service fees," Li Meiyun said.

However, Li emphasized that investors, as fully capable adults, had their losses most directly caused by "full positions with margin leverage." Securities firms disclose risks when opening accounts. Therefore, the likelihood of winning civil compensation for trading losses is extremely low.

What Are the Boundaries for Financial Influencers' Investment Advice?

As the incident continues to unfold, market discussions have deepened from compensation claims to the compliance of Ren Zeping's "VIP paid group" operational model and acting as a financial influencer while providing investment advisory services.

In response, Xu Feng stated that legally, as investment analysis and advice are involved, it's necessary to clarify whether the operating entity holds the appropriate qualifications. "Even without recommending individual stocks, merely expressing views on industry prospects, investment predictions, analysis, and suggestions all fall under the scope of investment advisory services."

Hao Dahai, a lawyer at Shanghai Huawan Law Firm, also stated that securities investment advisory services are not limited to recommending individual stocks. Continuously analyzing and recommending specific sectors may also constitute securities investment advisory services. Determining whether an activity constitutes a securities investment advisory business also considers factors like fee models and ongoing service relationships.

Regarding whether views in Ren Zeping's courses like "tech bull market" and "major uptrend" constitute investment advice, Wang Zhibin said it requires a comprehensive judgment based on the overall course content and expression. If the content is merely macroeconomic trend analysis, it typically remains opinion expression. But if it's continuously linked to specific industries or sectors, leading ordinary investors to form clear expectations about investment direction, it may be considered as having investment advisory characteristics.

"If Ren Zeping or the operating entity of the paid group business lacks the required investment advisory qualifications, and the business model meets the legal elements for such activities with significant amounts involved, it could potentially be suspected of illegal business operations. However, final responsibility determination still requires very specific evidence," Xu Feng further pointed out.

An investigation by The Paper shows that there are currently two public accounts where Ren Zeping's paid courses can be purchased: "Zeping Macro" and "Zeping Macro Outlook." Account information indicates that "Zeping Macro" is operated by Haizai Zaiwu Information Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., and "Zeping Macro Outlook" is operated by Beijing Reading and Beneficial Information Technology Co., Ltd.

The National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System shows that the business scopes of Haizai Zaiwu Information Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. and Beijing Reading and Beneficial Information Technology Co., Ltd. do not include "securities investment advisory" or "financial advisory related to securities trading and securities investment activities."

Additionally, the latest directory of securities investment advisory institutions published on the China Securities Regulatory Commission's official website (May 2026) includes 76 companies. The Paper's review found that neither Haizai Zaiwu Information Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. nor Beijing Reading and Beneficial Information Technology Co., Ltd. are included.

As of press time, The Paper inquired with Zeping Macro customer service about whether the relevant operating entities hold securities investment advisory business qualifications but received no response.

However, The Paper noted that the business scope of Haizai Zaiwu Information Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. includes "information technology consulting services," and Beijing Reading and Beneficial Information Technology Co., Ltd. includes "socioeconomic consulting services."

In response, Li Meiyun told The Paper that the business scopes of "information technology consulting services" and "socioeconomic consulting services" are unrelated to "securities investment advisory" and do not indicate that either company holds securities investment advisory qualifications.

The WeChat Mini Program course details page introduces Ren Zeping as "Founder of Zeping Macro, Economist, former Deputy Director of the Macro Department at the Development Research Center of the State Council, and Managing Director and Chief Macro Analyst at Guotai Junan Securities Research Institute."

According to previous disclosures from the Securities Association of China's practitioner information system, Ren Zeping, male, holds a doctorate. He joined Guosen Securities in December 2007, left in 2009, joined Guotai Junan Securities in 2014, and joined Founder Securities in 2016.

In March 2021, Ren Zeping announced joining Soochow Securities as Chief Economist. According to previous reports by The Paper, Soochow Securities responded that Ren Zeping is a specially invited economist, not an employee, and does not participate in the research institute's research report work.

Query results from the Securities Association of China's practitioner information system show that after Ren Zeping left Founder Securities and canceled his practice registration in December 2017, no subsequent practice registration records have been found in public information.

Editor for this issue: Xu Chu

Extensive information and precise analysis are available on Sina Finance APP

Responsible Editor: Yu Yihan