The trial of real estate tycoon Zhou Zhengyi, also known as Chau
Ching-ngai, has begun in Shanghai, according to a brief notice
Thursday in the China Securities Journal. Zhou is accused of
falsifying figures for registered investments and manipulating
stock prices.
Zhou's wife and business partner, Mo Yuk-ping, is under
investigation by Hong Kong's anti-graft agency, the Independent
Commission Against Corruption.
The case against Zhou, one of China's wealthiest businessmen,
also tarnished a branch of the Bank of China. Its Hong Kong unit,
BOC Hong Kong, vowed to improve its lending practices after
questions were raised about a HK$1.8 billion (US$226.9 million)
loan to a company owned by Zhou.
The BOC recalled the chief executive of the Hong Kong branch,
Liu Jinbao, to Beijing and then dismissed him.
Zhou, a Shanghai native, made his millions running restaurants
and retail outlets before moving into property development. In
2002, Forbes magazine rated him China's 11th-richest man, with a
fortune estimated at US$320 million.
He is also being sued in civil court by 2,000 residents of a
Shanghai neighborhood who say he failed to compensate them
adequately for demolishing their homes as part of a redevelopment
project.
(Shenzhen Daily May 21, 2004)