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Chinese Bank Chairman Is Missing


Fan Bao, founder, Chairman and CEO of China Renaissance Group, an investment bank led by one of the country’s most famed rainmakers, holds a news conference on its IPO in Hong Kong, China, Sept. 13, 2018.
Fan Bao, founder, Chairman and CEO of China Renaissance Group, an investment bank led by one of the country’s most famed rainmakers, holds a news conference on its IPO in Hong Kong, China, Sept. 13, 2018.

One of China's top investment banks says it has lost touch with its founder, billionaire Bao Fan, one of the country's most high-profile bankers.

On Thursday, Investment bank China Renaissance said it has not been able to contact Bao for two days.

The bank said it was not aware of any information indicating Bao’s “unavailability” is related to the bank’s business.

Bao Fan is a major figure in the Chinese tech industry and has played what many see as a pivotal role in the emergence of various domestic internet startups.

His disappearance has raised concerns of renewed crackdown on China's finance industry as President Xi Jinping continues in his long-standing crusade against public corruption.

In September, China Renaissance’s former president, Cong Lin, was apprehended by Chinese authorities, according to Caixin, a Chinese financial media outlet.

The company’s stock has plummeted since its announcement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange about the chairman’s disappearance.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse

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