The species was first described in 2008 by Bao-Kai Cui and Yu-Cheng Dai, both of the Beijing Forestry University [REF].
Phylogenetic analysis of large subunit and internal transcribed spacer DNA sequence data, the results of which were published in 2012, concluded that the species then known as F. ellipsoidea was closely related to Phellinus gabonensis, P. caribaeo-quercicolus and the newly described P. castanopsidis.