The CEO of Apple’s Chinese supplier Luxshare Precision Industry has reportedly been charged by Taiwanese prosecutors with using a shell company to secretly take over a key local company. In 2012, Luxshare Chairperson Grace Wang allegedly used a Hong Kong firm to conceal her company’s identity and purchase shares in Taiwan-based Speed Tech. Only after receiving approval from local authorities are Mainland Chinese companies permitted to conduct business on the island. Luxshare was previously accused by Taiwan of stealing commercial secrets from a Taiwanese supplier.
According to Bloomberg, Taiwanese prosecutors claimed in a court filing that Grace Wang used a Hong Kong firm to conceal her company’s identity and purchase shares in Speed Tech in 2012. According to Taiwanese law, mainland Chinese companies are not permitted to conduct business on the island without prior approval from the local authorities.
Luxshare, which typically manufactures basic tech accessories and components such as cables, chargers, and antennas, has recently emerged as a global iPhone assembler. The Chinese firm recently agreed to buy Wistron’s iPhone division.
Many mainland Chinese companies are allegedly accused of stealing technology. Taiwanese prosecutors accused Luxshare in July of stealing commercial secrets from a Taiwanese supplier and poaching its workforce in order to win orders from the US company.
Prosecutors in New Taipei discovered that China’s Luxshare Precision Industry had targeted Taiwanese rival Catcher Technology “in order to quickly enter the Apple production chain in order to win orders.” In connection with the case, they had charged 14 people with breach of trust.
