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Following Ruixing Coffee, iQiyi also broke financial fraud

2020/4/30

A short seller firm has accused Chinese video-streaming platform Iqiyi of reporting inflated revenue figures and user numbers in 2019, following just days after US-listed Luckin Coffee's explosive revenue fraud disclosure last Thursday.

The Beijing-based company often referred to as the "Netflix of China" is another high-profile target for short sellers following beverage chain Luckin Coffee's spectacular downfall, as US-listed Chinese companies find themselves under increasing scrutiny.

Muddy Waters Research tweeted a link to a Wolfpack Research report on Tuesday, alleging that Iqiyi had inflated its 2019 revenue by 27% to 44% and overstated user numbers by 42% to 60%.

The Wolfpack report claimed Iqiyi had also blown up its expenses, the prices it pays for content, other assets, and acquisitions "in order to burn off fake cash to hide the fraud from its auditor and investors."

The research, which Muddy Waters assisted with, included a survey of 1,563 people in Iqiyi's target demographic which found that VIP users of the video streaming site often scored free memberships through package deals with its partners, including Xiaomi TV and JD.com.

The company records the membership revenue in full and lists its partner's share as expenses, inflating both revenue and expenditures, according to the report.

Iqiyi said in a statement Wednesday that a report by short seller Wolfpack Research "contains numerous errors, unsubstantiated statements and misleading conclusions and interpretations."

Nasdaq-listed Iqiyi did not provide details backing its claims about the report, but said that it has always been committed to maintaining "high standards of corporate governance and internal control" in compliance with US securities regulations.

(from http://www.kekenet.com/read/202004/608199.shtml)

Following Ruixing Coffee, iQiyi also broke financial fraud

Anhui Guohe Investment Ltd