China Renaissance, a leading dealmaker in China's tech industry, has suspended trading of its shares and delayed the release of its annual results after the founder, Bao Fan, went missing. The 52-year-old entrepreneur, who started the boutique investment bank in 2005, cannot be reached by the company due to an ongoing investigation.
Bao's disappearance led to a sharp decline in the company's shares, with prices plummeting as much as 50% since his disappearance. China Renaissance stated that auditors were unable to complete their work or sign off on their report because of Bao's absence. The board was also unable to provide an estimate for when it would approve its audited results or dispatch its annual report by a Hong Kong listing rule deadline.
Bao, known as a veteran dealmaker who works closely with top technology companies in China, helped broker the 2015 merger between Meituan and Dianping. He has also invested in US-listed Chinese electric vehicle makers Nio and Li Auto, and assisted Chinese internet giants Baidu and JD.com with their secondary listings in Hong Kong.
The company's shares were suspended from Monday as a result of the delay. China Renaissance' struggles are the latest development in a broader financial crackdown by President Xi Jinping, which has targeted senior financial executives for corruption and other misconduct.
Bao's disappearance led to a sharp decline in the company's shares, with prices plummeting as much as 50% since his disappearance. China Renaissance stated that auditors were unable to complete their work or sign off on their report because of Bao's absence. The board was also unable to provide an estimate for when it would approve its audited results or dispatch its annual report by a Hong Kong listing rule deadline.
Bao, known as a veteran dealmaker who works closely with top technology companies in China, helped broker the 2015 merger between Meituan and Dianping. He has also invested in US-listed Chinese electric vehicle makers Nio and Li Auto, and assisted Chinese internet giants Baidu and JD.com with their secondary listings in Hong Kong.
The company's shares were suspended from Monday as a result of the delay. China Renaissance' struggles are the latest development in a broader financial crackdown by President Xi Jinping, which has targeted senior financial executives for corruption and other misconduct.
I'm really worried about Bao Fan, you know? He was like this super respected guy in the industry, helping out all these huge companies get their deals done. And now, one day he's just gone missing... it's freaky! 
China Renaissance' shares are down by 50% already, and I'm not surprised - nobody knows what's going on with Bao, or if he's even still alive 
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Like there's more going on than the company is letting on.
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. I mean, you've got a president cracking down on corruption and senior executives, but at the same time, companies like China Renaissance are struggling to keep their finances in order? It just seems like there's a lack of transparency and accountability 
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it's like he just vanished into thin air. what happened to him?! did something bad go down? and now the whole company is paying the price 
i mean, i know china has been cracking down on financial corruption and all, but this seems really suspicious. you'd think they'd at least try to keep it quiet or something 
. It's like something out of a movie or a spy novel. I wonder if there's more to this story than meets the eye... maybe he was involved in some shady business dealings that caught up with him 
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. Are they getting their money back? Will they still be able to do business after all this drama? It's a lot of uncertainty right now, but I hope they can get things sorted out soon 
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. No word on whether Xi Jinping's crackdown is connected to Bao Fan's disappearance, which is weird considering how much pressure there is on China's tech industry right now 
. Maybe we'll find out more as time goes on... fingers crossed 
this whole thing is super suspicious. I mean, Bao just goes missing and suddenly shares tank 50%? it's like something out of a bad thriller movie 
. and now the company can't even release their audited results because they can't find Bao? that's just crazy talk 
. but seriously, what's going on here? is this some kind of setup for China Renaissance to get dismantled? or maybe it's just a normal case of a missing founder, but with some shady financial stuff thrown in 
. the fact that China Renaissance is tied to President Xi Jinping's crackdown on senior financial executives makes me think there's more to this story than meets the eye 
. I need some answers here 
what's gonna happen next?? will bao be found safe or is this some kind of scandal that'll take down china renaissance? 
china's got a lot of financial problems right now and it seems like the government's not doing much about it...like what can be done to help these ppl? 
but this does not look good for the company's future 
50% drop in share price? yeah, not a pretty sight 
sounds like there's some serious investigation going on... fingers crossed for bao and china renaissance 
anyway i've always thought china renaissance was a big deal in the tech industry and now it seems like their founder is at the center of some shady dealings 
I mean, his company's shares just plummeted 50% since he vanished... that's crazy talk! 
It's all so dramatic 
. Anyway, hope Bao is okay, wherever he is 
. This whole thing just seems so mysterious & stressful 
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. They need to get to the bottom of this ASAP, but it seems they're playing it really safe by not releasing anything until they figure out what's going on 
. If they don't get their act together, it could lead to some major financial fallout 
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. It just smells like another example of crony capitalism gone wrong 
. What's next? More shell companies and hidden ownership structures? 
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