Delivery firm Missfresh collapses as another Nasdaq-listed Chinese firm falls prey to weakening economy

The Tencent-backed on-demand delivery firm abruptly announced on Thursday that it had run out of cash, dismissing workers and leaving suppliers unpaid. Missfresh blamed a coal miner for failing to come through on a promised investment, but China’s Covid-19 restrictions have hurt delivery operations and consumer spending. — SCMP

Nasdaq-listed retailer Missfresh, one of the new faces of Chinaʼs ecommerce sector, collapsed on Thursday with a dramatic announcement that it was dismissing most of its employees and leaving hundreds of suppliers unpaid.

The meltdown of Missfresh, which has raised at least US$2bil (RM8.89bil) from big-name investors including Tencent Holdings and Tiger Global, is another cautionary tale for investing in China-focused Internet services, as the world’s No 2 economy quickly loses momentum with Beijing’s “dynamic zero” Covid-19 policy contributing to lower consumer spending.