Gionee Officially Goes Bankrupt From Debts Excess

Folarin Adegboyega Awal

Chinese smartphone maker, Gionee has officially gone bankrupt as it now owes a total of $2.9 billion approximately to 648 creditors. Earlier, Gionee chairman Liu Lirong reportedly lost over $ 1.4 billion while gambling at a casino.

Gionee’s bankruptcy application has been accepted by the Chinese court in Shenzhen. Once a top smartphone manufacturer, Gionee has reportedly failed to pay its debt from various suppliers. The problem was compounded in November this year when Gionee chairman Liu Lirong reportedly “lost over $ 1.4 billion” while gambling at a casino in Saipan.

Lirong did admit to the gambling problem but maintained that he did not use Gionee’s money to gamble. He also admitted losing only around $144 million. Gionee owes $ 2.9 billion to 648 creditors as of August 2018. The company was losing $ 14.4 million a month between 2013 and 2015 and these losses further doubled in the last two years.

However, Liu Lirong is still hopeful and has stated that he sees a turnaround in the company’s fortune in 3-5 years. Meanwhile, as of last week, consultants were hired by Gionee to streamline and restructure the company and create a plan that would allow it to emerge out of the current mess.

Gionee was founded in 2002 in Shenzhen, Guagdong. It had a decent market share in China and had presence in India, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Vietnam, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, the Philippines and Algeria.