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Taiwanese business tycoon home again after being blocked from leaving China
OWNERSHIP DISPUTE:
Chinese authorities reportedly told Steven Wu he was being probed for crimes, but Wu believed he was being targeted after a company spat
STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
Sunday, Sep 02, 2007, Page 2
A local business tycoon who was reportedly forbidden by Beijing authorities from leaving China returned to Taipei yesterday evening, according to a press release issued by his Taipei company last night.
Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store, however, declined to confirm whether its general manager, Steven Wu (吳昕達), who is also the general manager of Shin Kong Place department store in Beijing, had fallen out with his Chinese partner over the ownership of Shin Kong Place.
The Chinese-language Commercial Times reported yesterday that Wu, who leads a group of Taiwanese staff operating the Shin Kong Place in Beijing, had been forbidden to leave China earlier this week, just before he was scheduled to return to Taipei for a business conference.
The paper said that Chinese Public Security officers said that Wu was allegedly involved in economic crimes and should not leave China until a criminal investigation had been carried out.
The paper quoted a member of Wu's Taiwanese staff as saying that Wu was caught off-guard by the order, adding that it probably stemmed from a dispute between Wu and his Chinese partner, Ji Xiao-an (吉小安), chairman of Shin Kong Place, over the management of the department store.
Wu, who has opened seven outlets within as many years in Taiwan for Shin Kong Mitsukoshi, owns a 50 percent stake in Beijing's Shin Kong Place, which has capital of 750 million yuan (US$99.19 million).
The store has made significant profits since it opened in April this year, with its revenue growing by 12 percent each month, but a dispute over its ownership broke out between Wu and Ji, who has tried to get rid of Wu and his Taiwanese staff, claiming that they accept bribes in connection with the store's operation, the Commercial Times, said.
The paper predicted that Wu would lose control of the store.
Shin Kong Mitsukoshi in Taiwan is owned by Wu's family and is the nation's largest department store chain, with a revenue of NT$60 billion last year.
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