An investigation into fraud at Alibaba, China’s largest e-commerce site, has led to the resignation of two top officials at the company. From AFP:
David Wei and Elvis Lee resigned as chief executive officer and chief operating officer respectively, accepting responsibility for “systemic breakdowns” that allowed the fraud to happen, the company said in a statement.
“The investigation confirmed that Mr Wei and Mr Lee and other members of senior management were not involved in any of the activities that led to the claims by buyers against fraudulent suppliers,” the statement said.
However, the board accepted that Wei and Lee had taken responsibility for the systemic breakdowns, the statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange said.
“One of our most important values is integrity,” founder and non-executive chairman Jack Ma said. “That means integrity of our employees and integrity of our online marketplaces as trusted and safe places for our small business customers.”
“We must send a strong message that it is unacceptable to compromise our culture and values. It saddens me to see talented people leave the company,” he said, thanking Wei and Lee for their service.
