Chinese smartphone maker Gionee is almost $3 bn in debt, files for bankruptcy

Various reports have emerged confirming that Chinese smartphone maker Gionee has gone bankrupt. The company, which made some name for itself with selfie-centric phones like the S11 is billions of dollars in debt to hundreds of creditors.

The bankruptcy filing has been expected for a while now, especially since company Chairman and CEO Liu Lirong admitted to gambling away at least 1 billion Yuan ($144 mn). Other reports put that number close to 10 bn Yuan ($1.44 bn). The company’s debts are pegged at around 17 bn Yuan (around $2.46 bn) in total and it’s unclear how much of an impact Lirong’s gambling losses had on the company.

According to a report in The Economic Times, the company was already losing 100 mn Yuan ($14.4 mn) a month between 2013 and 2015 and that the losses had doubled in recent years. The report also points out that Gionee’s Q1 2018 shipments were a dismal 150,000 units.

Gionee has filed for bankruptcy in Shenzen.