The criticism comes after India’s Enforcement Directorate – the country’s main financial investigation agency – raided Chinese smartphone major Vivo on money laundering charges earlier this week. In a press release on Thursday, the Indian agency said it had raided 48 Vivo locations in the country and seized 4.65 billion rupees ($60 million) from 119 bank accounts, including fixed deposits, cash and gold bars. In the statement, the Enforcement Directorate accused Vivo of tax fraud and said the company underpaid 624.8 billion rupees ($7.9 billion), mostly to China. “These remittances were made to reveal huge losses to companies registered in India to avoid paying taxes in India,” it said. “Employees of Vivo India, including some Chinese nationals, did not cooperate with the investigation procedures and tried to abscond,” the agency added. A spokesperson for Vivo in India said on Tuesday that the company is “working with the authorities to provide them with all the required information”.
Xiaomi is also a target
The raids on Vivo’s offices come two months after India siphoned off more than $700 million from another major Chinese smartphone maker, Xiaomi. He was also accused of smuggling money out of the country. Xiaomi India said at the time that “all our operations are fully compliant with local laws and regulations.” Chinese phone makers dominate the Indian market, with Xiaomi being the top-selling brand, according to data compiled by Counterpoint. Vivo is also among the top five brands, the company said. India has been tough on Chinese companies since border tensions between the world’s most populous countries escalated two years ago. In 2020, India banned more than 200 apps — many of which were Chinese, including the wildly popular video platform TikTok.
