Rumors of Overseas Remittance Worth About 7 Trillion Won Spread Online
Xiaomi: "Taking Legal Action to Punish Those Spreading the Rumors"
As rumors spread online that Lei Jun, CEO of Chinese tech giant Xiaomi, had transferred an astronomical sum worth trillions of won overseas through an American bank, Xiaomi has come forward to directly deny these allegations.
According to Chinese media outlets such as Sina Finance and The Paper on August 9, Wang Hua, General Manager (President) of Xiaomi’s PR division, refuted the rumors circulating on the Chinese internet regarding CEO Lei. The specific content of the rumor was that "CEO Lei transferred $5 billion (about 6.96 trillion won) overseas through someone named Mao at Wells Fargo."
On the previous day, General Manager Wang stated on his Weibo account, "After fact-checking, Xiaomi Group has never had any cooperation or any form of contact with either Wells Fargo or Mr. Mao anywhere in the world." He added, "All related statements have already been verified," and continued, "We have initiated legal procedures to hold those who created and spread these rumors legally accountable."
Lei, who graduated from the Department of Computer Science at Wuhan University, joined a software company in Beijing after graduation, and in April 2010, at the age of 40, founded Xiaomi. Xiaomi has continued to expand its business scope in various directions, from a wide range of home appliances and smartphones to recently entering the electric vehicle sector. Since its founding, Lei has remained CEO.
Wells Fargo executive from Shanghai visited China, then was banned from leaving
Meanwhile, Mao Chenwei, a Wells Fargo executive in charge of trade finance, was reportedly banned from leaving China after visiting the country. He is a U.S. citizen originally from Shanghai. Following Mao’s exit ban, Wells Fargo temporarily suspended business trips to China for its employees. The bank also stated, "We are responding closely through relevant channels to ensure that Director Mao can return to the United States."
On July 21, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated regarding this incident, "Chinese law enforcement agencies have imposed an exit ban because he is involved in a criminal case currently being handled in China," and added, "He is under investigation according to Chinese law and, for the time being, cannot leave the country."
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