China Renaissance says chairman Bao Fan is still cooperating with probe
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Mr Bao Fan has sprawling connections across sectors and had been the go-to banker for some of China’s biggest companies.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
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HONG KONG – China Renaissance Holdings said its chairman and founder Bao Fan is still “cooperating” in an unspecified investigation, high-flying banker’s sudden disappearance
“Mr Bao is still cooperating in the investigation carried out by certain authorities in the People’s Republic of China,” China Renaissance said in a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange late on Wednesday.
The Chinese investment bank roiled the domestic banking and business community in February by saying that Mr Bao was cooperating in a probe.
The announcement also suggested the company had not been in touch with Mr Bao and did not know where he was.
In China, the sudden absence of a boss has come to signal a government crackdown or investigation.
In many cases, the person is said to be assisting with graft probes.
Publicly listed companies typically report they have lost contact with the executive and need to make their own inquiries into what happened within the country’s opaque legal system.
President Xi Jinping launched a broad anti-corruption probe in late 2021 targeting the nation’s US$60 trillion (S$80.39 trillion) financial sector, which has brought down dozens of officials.
The probe has also implicated the investment banking community, ensnaring bankers from brokerages including Everbright Securities and Guotai Junan Securities.
Now Mr Xi is trying to revive private sector confidence at a time when the economy is weakening.
Mr Bao, an outspoken financier, has sprawling connections across sectors and had been the go-to banker for some of China’s biggest companies.
Trading of China Renaissance shares in Hong Kong has been suspended since April.
They plunged 30 per cent in February following the company’s initial announcement that it lost contact with Mr Bao.
In its Wednesday filing, the company said its business and operations are continuing normally and it will continue to monitor the matters related to Mr Bao and update investors “when appropriate”. BLOOMBERG
