High-profile Chinese dealmaker Bao Fan released from detention after two years, source says
China Renaissance shook the country's financial sector in 2023 when it announced it was unable to contact Bao, who founded the bank in 2005 with two other partners and still owns nearly 49 per cent of its issued shares.
Bao was among several high-profile executives in China, mostly from the finance industry, who went missing in recent years with little explanation during a sweeping anti-corruption campaign spearheaded by President Xi Jinping.
His disappearance unsettled professionals in the financial industry of the world's second-largest economy, as Beijing pressed its campaign to rein in what it described as the lavish lifestyle of the financial elite.
BOOSTING BUSINESS CONFIDENCE
Bao's release comes as Beijing seeks to bolster business confidence, particularly among the country's tech entrepreneurs, whose companies have been hit by a years-long crackdown.
China is looking to restore confidence in the private sector, which has been struggling with weak domestic consumption and a prolonged debt crisis in the property sector, set against a backdrop of heightened trade tensions with the United States.
"This is certainly a positive signal, as Bao was the most high-profile financier detained in recent years," said Christopher Beddor, deputy China research director at Gavekal Dragonomics.
"Still, it will not change the fact that the anti-corruption campaign continues to churn through the financial sector, and the common prosperity campaign has led to sweeping pay caps and even clawbacks," Beddor said. "China's financial sector remains a long way from its heyday only a few years ago."
HIGH-PROFILE DEALS
Bao, widely regarded as one of China's best-connected bankers, was released from detention earlier this week, the person said, declining to be identified because the information was not public.
He had been involved in major deals including the mergers of ride-hailing firms Didi and Kuaidi, food delivery companies Meituan and Dianping, and travel platforms Ctrip and Qunar.
Neither China Renaissance nor Bao immediately responded to Reuters' requests for comment. Chinese media outlet Caixin first reported Bao's release, citing unidentified sources.
China Renaissance's shares jumped 17 per cent on Friday to close at HK$6.87 (US$0.8752) before the news of his release became public.
DETAINED IN 2023
Bao, who previously worked at Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley, went missing in February 2023.
Trade in China Renaissance shares was suspended in April 2023 after the bank delayed publication of its audited annual results due to mainland Chinese authorities detaining Bao as part of an investigation.
A Chinese financial publication reported in May 2023 that he was detained by disciplinary and supervision officials. Authorities have not provided any explanation. China Renaissance shares plunged 72 per cent on the day trading resumed last September.
Sources previously told Reuters that Bao was taken away to assist in an investigation into a former colleague.
Xie Yi Jing, who co-founded China Renaissance, replaced Bao as chairman in February last year.
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