Firm did not disclose lawsuit because it had no court papers
Prosten Technology Holdings did not disclose a California lawsuit citing its involvement in a mainland banking scandal because company executives had not officially been served with court papers, a market source familiar with the situation said yesterday.
In a statement issued late last night, Prosten denied that it had facilitated payment of a bribe to Zhang Enzhao, who last week resigned as chairman of China Construction Bank (CCB).
Growth Enterprise Market-listed Prosten, with a market capitalisation of $33.23 million, was identified as a defendant in the US$58.66 million lawsuit, which was initially filed in a California court in December last year.
News of the lawsuit emerged at the weekend, but Prosten's shares were not suspended and closed unchanged yesterday at 6.5 cents.
A Hong Kong stock exchange spokeswoman declined to answer questions, saying the exchange could not comment on individual cases.