A self-styled mobile e-commerce expert, Gong Wenxiang first garnered attention in China’s micro-blogosphere in late 2017 after claiming he had a “monthly allowance of 6 million yuan (US$875,600), gave out 3 million yuan (US$437,800) in red envelopes, and purchased two luxury homes in two days.” The flashy post is typical among people engaging in “micro business,” a term referring to sales on social media in a scheme that resembles multi-level marketing. But unlike his peers, Gong does not sell physical products. Gong’s team said he cashed in with paid services such as tutorials, forums and personalized coaching from successful start-up entrepreneurs. His forum adverts also claim Gong has begun angel investing and took part in several projects. But according to investigative reports in business media, Shenzhen Chudian Information Technology, of which Gong holds a 99-percent share, only has a registered capital of 10,000 yuan (US$1,450) and paid in capital of 65,000 yuan (US$9,488), which belies his self-claimed annual income of over 50 million yuan (US$7.3m). In addition, Mr. Brand, a marketing firm where Gong is a registered representative, was listed for “abnormal operations” three times for its failure to submit annual reports between 2013 and 2015. Gong’s illusion of wealth and popularity is further stretched in the scarce user activity on his Weibo account, despite his registered 4.3 million followers.
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