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- Shares in Beijing-based investment bank China Renaissance plunged more than 20% after its founder and CEO went missing.
- China cracked down on the country’s tech CEOs last year, largely to better protect consumers.
- The top tech dealmaker’s disappearance coupled with China’s crackdown suggests the country is “uninvestable,” according to Muddy Waters Research.
Shares in a leading Chinese investment bank plunged more than 20% after the billionaire founder disappeared from view.
Shares of China Renaissance fell 28.2% in Hong Kong trading on Friday.
The company noted that it “has been unable to contact” the founder and CEO Baofan. “The Board is not aware of any information that would indicate that Mr. Bao’s unavailability is or may be related to the normal course of business and/or operations of the Group,” according to a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. .
The day-to-day operations of the Beijing-based investment bank will be led by the company’s executive committee during Fan’s absence, the statement said.
Fan’s disappearance follows an investigation into Cong Lin, the former chairman of Huajing Securities, the subsidiary of China Renaissance. quoted by CNBC.
Chinese authorities found that Huajing had violated the securities law related to corporate governance last September.
Since last fall, China has been suppressing and heralding the country’s technology industry plan restrict how companies use algorithms. The crackdown shocked investors, he added risks for Chinese technology stocks such as Alibaba and Ant Group. It has also discouraged many from holding Chinese technology stocks due to heightened uncertainty.
Muddy Waters Research, a US-based due diligence firm that conducts investigative research on Chinese companies, has suggested that Fan’s disappearance and China’s new tech regulations create an image for the country that is not investor-friendly.
“Again, China = non-investable,” one read tweet accompanied by the news from Fan.
