China places LeEco boss Jia Yueting in official debt defautlers’ list
13 Dec 2017
The high-profile founder of Chinese tech conglomerate LeEco has been placed in the official blacklist of debt defaulters, a development which adds to the company's troubles as it looks to compete in areas from smart cars to online entertainment.
Jia Yueting's name and ID number appeared on China's defaulter website after he failed to satisfy a court order to pay Ping An Securities Group (Holdings) Ltd over 470 million yuan ($71 million), according to a notice dated 11 December.
The development marks an abrupt turn of fortune for China's most prominent entrepreneur, who created a tech empire ranging from a Netflix-like online content platform to a smart-car unit looking to rival electric car giant Telsa Inc.
It comes after court cases and Jia being ousted as chief executive of the main listed unit of the group he founded. According to commentators development is symbolic of the firm's wider demise.
Persons who are named in the list can be restricted from frequenting luxury hotels, purchasing airline and high-speed train tickets, going to golf courses, sending their kids to expensive schools and even shopping online for luxury goods.
The restrictions, however apply only in China. Jia has been living in the US for months.
The group specialising in entertainment, electronics and electric vehicles has had to struggle to pay its debts after rapid expansion led to a cash crunch, share price plunge and multiple defaults.
According to commentators, Jia is now arguably the best-known individual on the list. In September, Chinese authorities added two LeEco subsidiaries to the list.
