China Finance Online Opens Beta Test of its Investment Advisory Service Platform

BEIJING, December 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- China Finance Online Co. Limited ("China Finance Online" or the "Company") (NASDAQ GS: JRJC), a leading web-based financial services company that provides Chinese retail investors with access to securities, commodities and wealth management products, today announced that the Company has launched a beta test for its Investment Advisory Service Platform or "Investment Masters" (in Chinese "iTouGu") today. The web-based system, and especially, real-time mobile apps for both iOS and Android are available at http://itougu.jrj.com.cn/.

The platform facilitates securities investment advisors to communicate with their clients and followers directly in real-time and for 24 hours, allowing a vast number of Chinese individual investors to obtain previously private advice from thousands of investment advisors. In addition, the Investment Masters platform provides these highly-demanded features including:

• Text and audio interactive messaging system allowing real-time broadcasting and Q&As between advisors and followers;
• Daily market analytics, research reports and investment strategies for investment advisors;
• Fast trade order placement directly connecting to the Company's Securities Masters platform; and
• Client Management system for every investment advisor to view and manage client profiles, historical data, and activities.

From the headquarter in Beijing, Mr. Zhiwei Zhao, Chairman and CEO of the Company, commented, "the team and I have dedicated our significant efforts for the past months in order to develop an application that would solve the asymmetric investment information issue for the mass. The Investment Masters platform would be a significant step toward this goal and it could greatly activate the market by catering to each investor's individual preference and experience".

"Meanwhile", Mr. Zhao continued, "I am looking forward to more break-through applications that would enable individual to make investment decisions in unprecedented ways."

About China Finance Online

China Finance Online Co. Limited is a leading web-based financial services company in China. The company provides Chinese retail investors with online access to securities, commodities and wealth management products, as well as financial database and analytics services to institutional customers. The Company's two prominent flagship portal sites, www.jrj.com and www.stockstar.com, are ranked among the top financial websites in China. In addition to the web-based securities trading platform, the Company offers basic financial software, information services and securities investment advisory services to retail investors in China. Through its subsidiary, Shenzhen Genius Information Technology Co., Ltd., the Company provides financial database and analytics to institutional customers including domestic financial, research, academic and regulatory institutions. China Finance Online also provides brokerage services in Hong Kong. For more information, please visit http://www.chinafinanceonline.com/.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Among other things, this release contains the following forward-looking statements regarding:

• our prospect on our Investment Advisory Service Platform or "Investment Masters", its features, functions and integration with our existing financial services;
• our prospect on attracting investors to use the Investment Masters platform; and
• the market prospect of the business of internet and mobile finance.

Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, which risks and uncertainties include, among others, the following:

• the changing customer needs and demands, regulatory environment and market condition that we are subject to;
• the uneven condition of the world and Chinese economy that could lead to volatility in the equity markets and affect our operating results in the coming quarters;
• the impact of the changing conditions of the Chinese stock market, Hong Kong stock market and global financial market on our future performance;
• the unpredictability of our strategic transformation and growth of new businesses, including our online securities trading services and platform;
• the degree to which our strategic collaborations with partners will yield successful outcome;
• the prospect for China's high-net-worth and middle-class households;
• the prospect of equipping our customer specialists with new technology, tools and financial knowledge;
• the competition we are facing in the new business of internet finance and online securities trading;
• wavering investor confidence that could impact our business; and
• possible non-cash goodwill, intangible assets and investment impairment may adversely affect our net income.

Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F under "Forward-Looking Information" and "Risk Factors." The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law.

Investor Relations Contact:

Ms. Yiwen Zhang
China Finance Online Co. Limited
+86-10-5832-5288
ir@jrj.com

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