ADVERTISEMENT

Stanford Dad Accused of $6.5 Million Payment in College Scandal Has a New Problem

Stanford Dad Accused of $6.5 Million Payment in College Scandal Has a New Problem

(Bloomberg) -- The Chinese father who allegedly paid $6.5 million to get his daughter into Stanford University has another reason to worry: his pharmaceutical company is under scrutiny by the Shanghai stock exchange regulator over the level of its sales expenses.

Shandong Buchang Pharmaceuticals Co., whose chairman Zhao Tao has been caught up in the U.S. college admissions scandal, said in a statement Monday that it had received questions from the stock exchange over why its sales expenses amounted to a higher-than-average 59% of the company’s 2018 revenue of 13.7 billion yuan ($1.99 billion). The company, which sells herbal medicines and bio-pharmaceuticals, said that the sales expenses were for general marketing and consulting, but did not explain why it was higher than the industry average.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Buchang’s peers like Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co. and Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. have sales expenses to revenue ratios of around 40%.

Stanford Dad Accused of $6.5 Million Payment in College Scandal Has a New Problem

Paying fees to doctors and hospitals for prescribing products is an oft-reported although legally questionable occurrence in the pharmaceutical industry in China. In 2014, British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline Plc had to pay a half a billion dollar fine after China charged the company with bribery of local health officials.

Shandong Buchang did not respond to calls for comment. Its stock has dropped over 20% since Zhao’s family’s involvement in the college admissions scandal was reported earlier this month.

Zhao’s wife said in a statement on May 3 that she had given $6.5 million to the foundation of William Singer, the man at the center of an admissions scandal that exposed how wealthy parents got their children into elite schools by cheating.

Their daughter Yusi was reportedly presented by Singer as a competitive sailor in order to gain admission to Stanford. Mrs. Zhao said in the statement that she had been misled by Singer into thinking the payment was a charitable donation.

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniela Wei in Hong Kong at jwei74@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rachel Chang at wchang98@bloomberg.net, Bhuma Shrivastava

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.