Apple-bashing Chinese CEO’s mountain of debt lands him on official ‘deadbeat’ list

Smartisan founder Luo Yonghao is now barred from taking flights or high-speed train trips as well as any sort of lavish spending

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Luo Yonghao, founder of smartphone vendor Smartisan Technology, has been a vocal critic of Apple’s products, but he has also publicly admired the US technology giant’s late co-founder Steve Jobs. Photo: Handout

Sarah Daiin BeijingandLi Taoin Shenzhen

Published: 6:30am, 5 Nov 2019Updated: 6:50am, 5 Nov 2019

Luo Yonghao, founder of Smartisan Technology, was once hailed for his savvy marketing skills, which helped build a niche Chinese smartphone brand with a cult following.

Examples of his knack for promotion included publicly bashing Apple for “losing its soul”, turning his company’s annual product launches into variety shows and getting consumers to pay to hear his sales pitch.

But the 49-year-old entrepreneur’s financial troubles have landed him a place among the current 15 million “deadbeats” – officially designated as “discredited individuals”, or laolai in Chinese – on a national database maintained by China’s Supreme Court.

Daily life for Luo, a former English teacher, is now a series of inflicted indignities. He is barred from taking flights or high-speed train trips as well as any sort of lavish spending, such as staying in luxurious hotels or golf clubs, according to a Chinese court’s recent ruling.

Luo, who has also been legally barred from buying property or sending his children to private schools, said in a post on microblog site Weibo on Sunday that he will work hard to pay his debt. He also apologised to Smartisan’s creditors, investors and users. He declined to make any further comments on his situation, according to a company spokeswoman.