Company: ZHIHF
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001410578-25-000729
Chunk: 10

Company: Zhihu Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 3
Chunk 10
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 and the VIEs and their subsidiaries are subject to certain restrictions with respect to payment of dividends or otherwise transfers of any of their net assets to us. Remittance of dividends by a wholly foreign-owned enterprise out of China is also subject to examination by the banks designated by the PRC State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE. These restrictions are benchmarked against the paid-up capital and the statutory reserve funds of our PRC subsidiaries and the net assets of the VIEs in which we have no legal ownership. As of December 31, 2022, 2023, and 2024, the total amount of such restriction to which our PRC subsidiaries and the VIEs and their subsidiaries are subject was RMB3.1 billion, RMB2.3 billion, and RMB2.1 billion (US$284.7 million), respectively. For risks relating to the fund flows of our operations in China, see “ Item 3. Key Information - D. Risk Factors - Risks Relating to Doing Business in China - We principally rely on dividends and other distributions on equity paid by our PRC subsidiaries to fund any cash and financing requirements we may have. Any limitation on the ability of our PRC subsidiaries to make payments to us could materially and adversely affect our ability to conduct our business or financial condition.”

Under PRC laws, Zhihu Inc. may fund its PRC subsidiaries only through capital contributions or loans, and fund the VIEs or their subsidiaries only through loans, subject to satisfaction of applicable government registration and approval requirements. As of December 31, 2022, 2023, and 2024, the aggregate amount of capital contribution by Zhihu Inc. to its intermediate holding companies and subsidiaries was RMB10.3 billion, RMB10.0 billion, and RMB9.6 billion (US$1.3 billion), respectively, and the outstanding balance of the principal amount of loans to the VIEs and their subsidiaries was RMB51.7 million, RMB51.7 million, and RMB51.7 million (US$7.1 million), respectively.

In 2022, 2023, and 2024, no assets other than cash were transferred through our organization.

Zhihu Inc. has not declared or paid any cash dividends since the listing of its ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange in March 2021, nor does it have any present plan to pay any cash dividends on its ordinary shares in the