A Chinese billionaire dealmaker has gone missing, throwing one of the country’s top investment banks into turmoil.
Bao Fan, the founder and CEO of China Renaissance, is a major figure in the Chinese technology industry and has played an important role in the rise of a number of large national Internet companies.
Shares in China Renaissance slumped after the bank told the Hong Kong stock exchange on Thursday that it had been unable to contact Bao, without elaborating.
The stock plunged 50% at one point after the statement, before recovering as much as 30% less.
According to financial news outlet Caixin, the 52-year-old had not been available for two days as of Thursday night.
China Renaissance’s executive committee told employees not to worry in a message Friday morning. “[We] believe that everyone has had a restless night. At the moment, [we] I hope you don’t create or spread rumors,” the message read, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Bao’s disappearance raises concerns about a possible renewed crackdown on China’s financial industry, as President Xi Jinping persists in his long-running campaign against corruption.
The Chinese government has cracked down on several major industries, including technology, education and real estate, as part of Xi’s “common prosperity” push to “keep income distribution and the means of accumulating wealth well-regulated.” .
At least six billionaires have been intimidated by Xi, including Jack Ma, the founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba, who went missing for three months in 2020 after criticizing market regulators.
Willer Chen, a senior analyst at Forsyth Barr Asia, told Bloomberg that the executive’s absence “could be overkill in the long run for the stock, given that Bao is the point man for the company.”
Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry, said he was “not aware of the relevant information” when asked about Bao’s disappearance.
“But I can tell you that China is a country under the rule of law,” he said. “The Chinese government protects the legitimate rights of its citizens in accordance with the law.”
China Renaissance has grown into a global financial institution, with more than 700 employees and offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and New York.
Bao founded the bank in 2005 after working at Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse. He competed against Wall Street stalwarts to win mandates in big deals and stock listings.
The group has overseen the initial public offerings of several national Internet giants, including leading e-commerce firm JD.com. Bao also facilitated a 2015 merger between ride-sharing company Didi and its main rival at the time, Kuaidi Dache.
Desmond Shum, a former Chinese tycoon, speculated that Bao might have been targeted due to his inside knowledge of such deals. Large company mergers often involve both political and business connections.
The China Renaissance case is reminiscent of a pattern of investigations into the country’s top financiers in recent years.
In 2017, Chinese-Canadian businessman Xiao Jianhua was arrested by mainland authorities and received a 13-year prison sentence on corruption charges last August.
Known for close ties to top Chinese Communist Party leaders, the billionaire was allegedly abducted from his Hong Kong hotel room by plainclothes Beijing police officers. At the time of his arrest, Xiao was one of the richest people in China, with an estimated fortune of $6 billion.
According to Caixin, China Renaissance Chairman Cong Lin was detained last September when authorities launched an investigation into his work at the leasing unit of state-owned bank ICBC.
