LeEco is trending again! With 23.8 billion in debt, plans to invest 180 million in stocks

LeEco, which had been silent for a long time, made headlines due to an investment.

According to an announcement by LeEco, the company plans to use no more than 180 million yuan of its own funds for securities investment, including subscription of new shares on the Beijing Stock Exchange, freely traded stocks in the secondary market, and reverse repurchase of government bonds.

The announcement details show that at least 150 million yuan of this investment will be specifically used for subscription of new shares on the Beijing Stock Exchange and reverse repurchase of government bonds, with the remaining no more than 30 million yuan available for investment in secondary market stocks, subject to strict restrictions: bank stocks must account for no less than 50%, and constituents of the CSI 300 Index must account for no less than 80%.

So, does this investment mean LeEco has emerged from its crisis?

The answer is no.

According to its latest disclosed report for the first three quarters of 2025, LeEco's operating revenue was 115 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 2.88%; net loss was 242 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of -39.33%; and adjusted net loss was 219 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of -63.55%.

Specifically, in the third quarter, LeEco's revenue was 41.9076 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.02%; net loss was 68.4249 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of -175.62%; and adjusted net loss was 71.0222 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of -4.19%.

Additionally, the report shows that as of the end of the third quarter, LeEco's total liabilities were 23.009 billion yuan, while its total assets were 862 million yuan, meaning the company is in a state of severe insolvency.

Therefore, LeEco's financial situation is not optimistic based on the report.

So, how much money does LeEco have to support its investment business?

The report shows that as of the end of the third quarter, LeEco's book cash was 459 million yuan, and total cash was 474 million yuan. In other words, this investment is not a small amount for LeEco. Of course, LeEco currently faces many problems, and not every investment will yield returns.

According to media reports, in April last year, LeEco announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary planned to provide no more than 100 million yuan in financial assistance to Beijing Wangdao Hamburger Co., Ltd. This company, through franchise authorization, has the license to open and operate Burger King franchise restaurants in certain parts of China. LeEco aims to invest in Burger King franchisees through financial assistance with the right to increase registered capital.

By April this year, LeEco's announcement showed that this investment had already encountered risks. LeEco set aside a bad debt provision of 6.8 million yuan, or 34%, for its 20 million yuan claim against Beijing Wangdao, acknowledging that "this loan still carries bad debt risks."

With such massive debts, why can LeEco still use its limited remaining funds for investment?

According to the report, as of September 30, LeEco had 167,800 shareholders, a decrease from the previous quarter. Based on equity analysis, Jia Yueting remains the largest shareholder of LeEco, holding 549 million shares, accounting for 13.77% of the company's total shares, all of which are pledged.

Notably, as of the end of the third quarter, LeEco had 152 employees. Regarding whether the company's investments have the support of major shareholders, LeEco once revealed in an announcement that in recent years, the company has had no direct communication or email contact with Jia Yueting himself.

From LeEco's current situation, the company's difficulties do not actually affect its normal operations. As early as 2022, LeEco made headlines for having "no boss" and no internal competition. After trending on Weibo, some netizens joked: "One 'Empresses in the Palace' has secured LeEco's prosperity for life."

According to LeEco's financial report, as of the first half of this year, the company's operating income was divided into three parts: internet services accounted for 139.85% of total revenue; film and television distribution accounted for 16.68%; and inter-segment offsets accounted for -56.53%.

Currently, LeEco's core revenue sources come from paid member subscriptions, film and television distribution income, advertising, and copyright licensing. In other words, LeEco has been "surviving" by relying on popular dramas like "Empresses in the Palace" and "The Legend of Mi Yue."

Kan Jian Finance noted that as early as January 2021, more than 2,000 investors filed a civil lawsuit against LeEco and 20 other defendants, seeking a total compensation of 4.571 billion yuan.

At the time, the court determined that the total loss amount for the investors was 2.04 billion yuan, with LeEco bearing full compensation liability for the plaintiffs' losses. However, the lawyer for the case told the media that the actual execution of the case would be difficult. To this day, LeEco's fundamentals have not undergone any major changes, and compensation for investors is still expected to be difficult to enforce.