NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India’s financial crime agency, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), on Tuesday arrested a Chinese national who works for smartphone maker Vivo in a case of alleged money laundering, the latest challenge for the company in a key market.
An Indian court sent the Vivo executive to three days of custody following a request by the Indian agency’s lawyer in a case that dates back to 2022.
Vivo has denied the allegations. It said in a statement on Tuesday that the arrest of its executive “deeply concerns us. We will exercise all available legal options”.
Vivo is owned by China’s BBK Electronics and is the second biggest smartphone brand in India with a 17% market share.
Here is a list of the Chinese company’s growing troubles in India:
-Earlier this month, Indian police formally accused Vivo Mobile of helping transfer funds illegally to NewsClick, a news portal under investigation on charges of spreading Chinese propaganda. Vivo has not commented on the allegations.
-In August 2022, India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) issued a show cause notice to the phone maker over allegations of evading taxes worth 22.1 billion Indian rupees ($280 million). Vivo did not respond to requests for comment at the time.
-In July 2022, India’s financial crime agency said it had blocked 119 bank accounts linked to Vivo’s India business and its associates that were holding 4.65 billion rupees ($58.76 million), as part of a probe into alleged money laundering by the company.
(Compiled by Blassy BobenEditing by Mark Potter)
