Fraud-hit Luckin Coffee Shares To Be Suspended From Nasdaq, Domestic Operations Remain Normal

China’s Luckin Coffee (NASDAQ: LK) announced on Friday that it has withdrawn its hearing request to the Nasdaq’s Board of Directors and will suspend the trading of its shares at the open of business on June 29, 2020.

The Beijing-based coffee company and main rival to Starbucks in Mainland China notified the NASDAQ’s Listing Qualifications Staff on Wednesday that it was giving up plans to appeal the delisting decision, the company announced on its website on Friday. The company initially requested an oral hearing last month after the Nasdaq informed the company of its plans to delist the shares in a May 15 notice.

SEE ALSO: Luckin Coffee Shares Plunge After Nasdaq Delisting Notice

Luckin Coffee also announced that the Board of the Company is moving to force out Charles Zhengyao Lu as director and chairman. A board meeting will be held on July 2, 2020 to consider the proposal to remove Lu, the company said on Friday. The proposal was requested by the majority of the board’s directors and based on findings and recommendations presented by a special committee.

Luckin said on Saturday that despite its delisting from the Nasdaq, more than 4,000 of its domestic stores in China will continue their normal operations.

“30,000 of Luckin’s employees will continue to provide customers with quality products and services,” Luckin said on its Weibo account. “We sincerely thank the consumers for their support, and once again, we apologize for the negative impact it brought to society.”

Shares of Luckin plunged more than 50% to about $1.40 on Friday, giving the stock a market value of 348 million US dollars.