On December 5th, Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily reported (Reporter Huang Xinyi) that the controversy surrounding the "Chengxing 618 case" continues to escalate. Following JD's response, Noah Wealth's subsidiary Shanghai Gefei Asset Management Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Gefei Asset") responded on its official WeChat account.
Gefei Asset stated that it has taken note of the statement issued by JD Group on December 4, 2023. The "Chengxing 618" case occurred in June 2019, and Shanghai Gefei, as the plaintiff, filed a civil lawsuit against the defendants such as Chengxing and JD in July 2019. The court accepted and filed the case in 2019.
"The case occurred four years ago and was recently heard in court. At this critical moment in judicial proceedings, we are puzzled by JD Group's sudden and emotionally charged statement. At the same time, we call on JD Group to present specific evidence of its" 100% gun lying down "to the court in a legal and compliant manner." Gefei Asset stated, "We believe that as a responsible large Hong Kong and US listed company, JD.com will not attempt to guide public sentiment in public opinion, consume public resources, and thus affect the trial of cases."
Gefei Asset also believes that the description in JD's statement that "Noah Wealth has experienced more than ten similar incidents in recent years, with billions of funds..." is seriously untrue and has infringed on its reputation. It will take legal measures to protect its legitimate rights and interests.
JD: Gefei Asset shirks responsibility and seeks a "scapegoat" for itself
On December 4th, JD Group issued a statement stating that the "Chengxing case" has recently attracted widespread media and public attention. JD, as an uninformed victim, was involved in a four-year malicious lawsuit, causing significant damage to the company's reputation and rights.
The statement points out that in the process of contract fraud in the Chengxing Group, Chengxing Group companies easily deceived Noah Wealth, known as the "global comprehensive financial platform," and its Gefei assets by using fake JD official seals, fake JD employees, fake JD systems, and false transaction data, and obtained huge financing from Gefei, which directly caused explosions. Faced with more than two years of ongoing fraud, Gefei Asset's due diligence work has shown obvious deficiencies, and there are huge loopholes in investment and financing management. Executive Fang Jianhua accepted a huge bribe from Chengxing (which has been sentenced in the first trial), causing significant losses to investors and failing to fulfill corresponding responsibilities and obligations to investors.
JD.com stated that according to public information, Noah Wealth has experienced more than ten similar incidents in recent years, facing problems in the redemption of billions of funds, and has repeatedly concealed information from investors. It has also been warned and punished by regulatory authorities, indicating its long-term serious risk control deficiencies. At present, the criminal case related to the Chengxing case has been sentenced in the first instance, and the actual controller of Chengxing, Luo Jing, and other fraud suspects have been sentenced to prison. Noah Wealth and Gefei Asset still disregard the trust of investors, refuse to examine their internal management issues, and maliciously launch a ridiculous and high amount lawsuit against third-party JD.com, attempting to confuse the public, continue to mislead investors and the general public, shift responsibility, and seek a "scapegoat" for themselves. We believe that the court will make a fair judgment on this case. I hope that Noah Wealth and Gefei Asset will face their own problems, show sincerity and take corrective measures, especially to enhance the most basic integrity and literacy as a wealth management company, and truly protect the rights and interests of investors.
The "Chengxing Case" has been sentenced in the first instance, and the actual controller Luo Jing has been sentenced to life imprisonment
On the afternoon of July 5, 2019, Boxin Holdings announced that its actual controller and chairman, Luo Jing, and director and CFO, Jiang Shaoyang, were criminally detained by the Yangpu Branch of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau on June 20 and June 25, respectively.
On July 8, 2019, Noah Wealth announced that the products issued by Gefei Asset provided supply chain financing for companies related to Chengxing International Holdings, with a total amount of 3.4 billion yuan. The actual controller of Chengxing International Holdings has recently been criminally detained by Chinese police on suspicion of fraudulent activities.
According to Interface News, the criminal judgment of Luo Jing shows that the Shanghai Second Intermediate People's Court (hereinafter referred to as the Shanghai Second Intermediate People's Court) made a first instance judgment on November 1, 2022. Luo Jing, the actual controller of Chengxing Company, was sentenced to life imprisonment for committing contract fraud and bribery of non-state employees. Luo Lan was sentenced to 17 and a half years in prison for contract fraud, and 10 employees of the Chengxing family involved in the case were sentenced to imprisonment ranging from three years and four months to eight years.
The judgment also found that companies such as JD.com and Suning, as well as their employees, were unaware of Chengxing's fraudulent behavior, and the relevant cooperation contracts, seals, and materials were all forged.
The judgment shows that under the instructions and arrangements of Luo Jing, multiple employees of Chengxing Group forged work cards in the offices of JD.com and Suning Company, impersonating employees of both companies to conduct interviews, hand over materials, and sign contracts with the victim units; Display false JD company websites, provide false trade data and purchase and sales contracts to relevant financial institutions; Intercept the express delivery of debt transfer materials sent by these financial institutions to JD Company and Suning Company, stamp false seals on the materials, and then return them to the victim unit; Opening accounts to impersonate JD Company accounts for payment collection, etc.
In addition, Fang Jianhua, a financing staff member of Noah, received over 2 million yuan in bribes from Chengxing Group, providing convenience for Chengxing Company to engage in fraud in business docking, follow-up investigations, and other aspects.
Lawyer: If there is evidence to prove that the official seal was forged, there is doubt as to whether the underlying transaction contract is established
Lawyer Jiang Mengxing from Beijing Qinglv (Shenzhen) Law Firm stated in an interview with the Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily that Gefei Asset has listed JD.com as a joint defendant this time. According to the court hearing announcement issued by the Shanghai Financial Court, the cause of the case is "other contract disputes", and it is possible that Gefei Asset's lawsuit is based on contracts stamped with JD's seal and other content. If there is evidence to prove that the JD company seal affixed to the contract is forged or even constitutes a criminal offense, then signing the basic transaction contract is not JD's true intention, and there is doubt about whether the basic transaction contract is established.
Jiang Mengxing stated that in a similar case related to Suning Company tried by the Shanghai Financial Court, the court believed that the plaintiff should bear the burden of proof for the authenticity of the basic debt. If the basic debt is not true, then the plaintiff's request for the defendant to bear responsibility for the untrue contractual debt is difficult to obtain court support. At the same time, the judgment cases of the Supreme People's Court indicate that in the case of the forgery of the official seal, the application of the apparent agency rule is not absolutely excluded, and it needs to be distinguished and treated in combination with specific facts.