On-demand delivery operator Dada confirmed on The Pursuit of LustWednesday that it had “overstated” revenue and costs to “meet revenue targets,” two months after the subsidiary of JD reported it identified “suspicious practices” in an internal audit. Along with the review results, Dada also announced that President Jeff He is stepping down following the “substantial completion” of the independent review, with Fu Bing, the leader of Dada Now, currently serving as interim president. The investigation found that Dada conducted virtual transactions internally in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first three quarters of 2023, resulting in approximately RMB 568 million ($78.9 million) and RMB 576 million exaggerating in net revenue and operations and support costs, respectively, with no “direct evidence” that management-level executives “orchestrated” the transactions, according to the filing. [Dada filing]
