Bao Fan, Chairman of China Renaissance Holdings Ltd., has been detained since February by the country’s antigraft investigators, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.
(Bloomberg) — Bao Fan, Chairman of China Renaissance Holdings Ltd., has been detained since February by the country’s antigraft investigators, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.
The star banker’s detention by China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection is related to an earlier investigation into Cong Lin, China Renaissance’s former president, according to the report.
Bao is being held under a special form of detention known as “liuzhi”, or “retention in custody,” where a person may be detained for as long as six months without any access to a lawyer, the report said, adding it remains unclear if Bao will be formally arrested and charged.
The development may further unnerve the nation’s business elite and add to growing signs that President Xi Jinping is not yet letting up on his yearlong crackdown on the private sector as well as the $60 trillion finance industry.
Before the detention, authorities had spoken to Bao several times over a period of months regarding the probe of Cong, according to the report. Bao was queried about a suspected quid pro quo involving a loan that Cong helped arrange for China Renaissance before joining the firm, the WSJ said.
The CCDI in Beijing couldn’t be immediately reached for comments.
Bloomberg News reported last month that Cong has been involved in a probe by authorities since September while China Renaissance said last week that Bao was cooperating in an unspecified investigation by Chinese authorities.
Xi launched a broad anti-corruption probe in late 2021 targeting the nation’s financial sector, which has brought down dozens of officials. Tian Huiyu, the former president of China Merchants Bank Co., was among the latest charged with violations including taking bribes.
The probe has also implicated the investment banking community, ensnaring bankers from brokerages including Everbright Securities Co. and Guotai Junan Securities Co.
A former banker at Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse Group AG, Bao founded China Renaissance in 2005, making a name for the firm by brokering tough mergers that led to the formation of ride-hailing service Didi Global Inc. and food-delivery giant Meituan. His knack for closing complicated deals and spotting rising tech stars made him one of China’s most influential financiers.
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