Senior managers of ZTE Corp (0763) have reportedly been detained in Mongolia for alleged bribery involving a digital education project. Acting on tips, officers of Mongolia's anti- corruption bureau raided ZTE offices and managers' homes as well as checking cars and garages, itxinwen.com quoted insiders as saying.
"The bureau found evidence of bribery after a comprehensive investigation into the documents relating to ZTE's digital education projects," according to a claim yesterday.
Executives of the Shenzhen-based firm - the world's fifth-largest telecommunications equipment supplier - were refusing to comment on the arrests, according to the Global Times, though they were reported as saying the firm had acted in accordance with the laws of Mongolia.
From 2007 to 2012, ZTE was linked to bribery in the Philippines, Algeria and Norway.
The Mongolia case was not the only matter troubling ZTE yesterday.
It is in a patent dispute with Huawei Technologies, which won an injunction from a German court on a complaint about 4G-ready base stations. ZTE is to appeal.
ZTE issued a profit warning in January, estimating losses for the past year would come up to 2.9 billion yuan (HK$3.62 billion) on project delays and lower sales.
