Renren Audit-Panel Head Resigns as IPO Nears
Chinese online social-networking company Renren Inc. suffered another embarrassment ahead of its public listing in the U.S., after a member of its board who heads its audit committee said he had resigned following allegations of fraud against a company where he works as a senior executive.
The move comes after Renren, often called “the Facebook of China,” last week revised a key user number in its listing prospectus after some observers questioned the accuracy of the company’s figures.
The revision meant the unique user base at Renren.com rose 19% in the first quarter from the prior quarter, compared with a previously reported rate of 29%, though the company’s most recent number of users remained the same. The episode highlighted the murkiness of data among China’s high-flying Internet companies just as a long string of companies in the sector seek initial public offerings of stock in the U.S.
