High-profile Chinese CEO missing in action

The chairman and CEO of one of China’s biggest investment banks was missing in action on Monday, as the country’s politburo continued its post-crash investigations into the financial sector.

Guotai Junan Securities confirmed it had not been able to contact Yim Fung since 18 November, saying he was currently “unable to discharge his duties”, according to the Telegraph.

The firm’s stock reportedly fell by as much as 17% in Hong Kong – the most severe intraday fall since July.

The incident came as the Chinese regime cracked down on the industry, after the red dragon’s disastrous summer crash.

One of the most high-profile investigations underway is that of Yao Gang, a vice-chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

It’s understood Yao was the general manager of Guotai Junan Securities from 1999 to 2002. Local online news service Sohu cited an unidentified Hong Kong financial source as saying Yim was taken away in connection with Yao’s case, though this remained unconfirmed.

Markets were likely to associate the disappearance of Yim “with the recent crackdown on the financial industry by mainland authorities”, said Partners Capital International chief executive Ronald Wan.

“Investors will be concerned about the company’s operations. It will also affect sentiment over the brokerage industry as a whole, as the industry is now under greater scrutiny”, he added.

Yim remained a well-known member of the Chinese financial sector at the time of his disappearance. He was named director of the year by the Hong Kong Institute of Directors in 2012, and was named among the high-profile businesspeople permitted to vote in the region’s elections.

At least 16 people had been arrested or were under investigation as part of the regime’s crackdown, according to research reported by Bloomberg.

The Chinese government’s campaign against financial corruption was sparked by the summer’s abysmal losses, in which the Shanghai Stock Exchange lost a third of the value of its A-shares in a one month period.

Guotai Junan Securities stock closed down 12.31%, at HKD 2.85.