Cyberson Gets Zapped

Richard Li's once ballyhooed Pacific Century CyberWorks is brought down to Earth by failed deals and rising doubts

Hong Kong tycoon Richard Li seemed to be walking on air last March when he used his 10-month-old start-up, Pacific Century CyberWorks, to acquire the territory's dominant telecommunications company, Cable & Wireless HKT. The $35.9 billion merger was the largest in Asia outside Japan. Analysts fell over one another to issue buy recommendations on CyberWorks' stock, which they predicted would soar into the stratosphere. Whoops! Put a hold on that order. Six months later, analysts say the new firm's strategy of linking broadband Internet services to an Old World telco is no longer so compelling--and Li is losing altitude fast.

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