Taiwanese prosecutors indict Chinese billionaire for cross-strait violations

Taipei, Sept. 25 (CNA) The New Taipei District Prosecutors Office on Thursday indicted Luxshare Precision Industry Co. Chairwoman and CEO Grace Wang (王來春) and three others for violating Taiwan's Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area.

Prosecutors said the billionaire businesswoman and co-founder of the China-based electronics manufacturer used a Hong Kong subsidiary in 2018 to acquire a division of Liteon Technology Co., a Taiwanese company.

Wang then sought to register it as an overseas Chinese-invested company but this was rejected by the Investment Commission of Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) because its funding involved Chinese capital.

After the rejection, Wang directed associates to form a new company in Taiwan to keep the business running, later changing managers and the company name, prosecutors said.

The firm continued hiring software and hardware specialists and sent research to its Guangzhou branch, according to prosecutors, violating cross-strait law.

They said Wang funneled about US$65.57 million (around NT$1.99 billion) through affiliates from 2018 to 2023 to fund operations and salaries.

The New Taipei District Prosecutors Office said it worked with the Ministry of Justice's Investigation Bureau and has issued a warrant for Wang.

According to Forbes, Wang is a Hong Kong citizen whose residence is in Shenzhen, China.

Wang is the seventh richest self-made woman in the world with a net worth of around US$13.7 billion, the Forbes website said.

Prosecutors warned that Chinese enterprises often use overseas investment fronts to operate in Taiwan and described Luxshare as a major competitor of Taiwanese firms in Apple's supply chain.