Here’s why China’s billionaires are disappearing

By December 11, 2015 Business No Comments
Here's why China's billionaires are disappearing

The ‘Warren Buffet of China’

China is home to fifty individuals with a net worth of one billion US dollars or more. One of China’s most high-profile entrepreneurs has disappeared. Guo Guangchang has an estimated net worth of $7 billion, and is an owner and investor in many Chinese industries. Through his investment vehicle the Fosun Group, the Chinese tycoon has interests in diverse fields from financial services, to mining, retail and many others. These endeavours allowed his company to become one the largest private enterprises in China, a country where state-run businesses still reign supreme. Guo Guangchang’s disappearance is just the most recent suspicious circumstance to befall China’s business class.

Missing magnates

China’s business executives and high-profile members of the financial elite have been vanishing. Yim Fung, the CEO of Guotai Yunan International was reported missing just two weeks before Guo Guangchang. 2015 has seen a total of five Chinese business figures disappear. Often, unsurprisingly, the financial effects of this on the companies is catastrophic. When Lei Heijun, the chairman of Hanenergy failed to attend a shareholder meeting in May 2015, the effect was dramatic. The value of shares plummeted 47%, resulting in an astonishing $18.6bn wiped from the company’s share values. Upon announcement of Guo Guangchang’s disappearance, share trading for Fosun International was suspended. These disappearances are more than mere coincidence.

Corruption questioning

Frequently, the business figures have been reported missing after being approached by the Chinese authorities to purportedly aid in an investigation of some variety. Central to these theories, is the Chinese government’s supposed anti-corruption battle. Since 2013, under the charge of Premier Xi Jinping, and anti-corruption chief Wang Quishan, a number of China’s leading businessmen have been questioned under suspicion of corruption. The investigations began investigating officials at a local level, but soon increased in scope. The net expanded to cover state-owned companies, and, crucially, those involved in the financial sector. It is suspected that Guo Guangchang has been targeted by the Chinese government for this very reason.

An economic witch-hunt

The anti-corruption campaign, however, may not be as substantive as it seems. What at first seemed to be a genuine attempt to pursue those involved in unscrupulous dealings, soon morphed into a basic witch-hunt. The Chinese economy underwent substantial shocks in 2015. After a fall in exports, the Chinese government devalued the yuan in order to stimulate international trade. However, the damage had already been done. In addition to causing havoc on China’s stock markets, the export slump, coupled with the yuan devaluation saw stock markets take a plunge worldwide. The Chinese authorities are searching for a scapegoat for the year’s economic troubles. In China’s billionaires it seems they have found a target.

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