Arm China Fires CEO But He Refuses To Just Pack His Bags And Leave

Arm China — a Shanghai-based joint venture between Arm Ltd and Chinese private equity firm Hopu Investment — on Thursday said its former CEO Allen Wu was refusing to relinquish his role despite being fired last week. The company said it would overhaul the communication systems to protect against any misuse by Wu and his supporters, according to Reuters.

This came after the company's Chinese website appeared to be carrying a letter from staff protesting the ouster of Wu.

Wu was replaced by two Co-CEOs last week — this also caused a stir around the Arm subsidiary as over 430 staff opposed the board's decision.

Wu, Arm China, and its British parent Arm Ltd have been embroiled in a long dispute, and with the recent development, a resolution doesn't seem to be coming soon.

The company had, earlier in 2020, tried to oust Wu, citing "conflicts of interest," but he refused to step down at the time as well. Wu continued to maintain control of the company and complicate efforts to audit the unit's financials, a process that is crucial to its planned IPO.

Meanwhile, the U.K. is wooing SoftBank-backed chip maker Arm Ltd to list in London instead of New York in the aftermath of the Nvidia Corp. NVDA deal fallout. The Japanese owner is eyeing New York for its public offering — given that it is the hub for tech giants like Meta Platforms Inc FB and Apple Inc AAPL.

Photo: Courtesy of Arm