CALC shares plunge after announcment of resignation of missing CEO Mike Poon

The sudden resignations of China Aircraft Leasing Group’s  missing chief executive and second-largest shareholder Mike Poon Ho Man and its finance chief sent the company’s shares down more than 20 per cent on Friday and heightened speculations of a sector-wide anti-graft crackdown.

China Aircraft,  whose shares had been suspended from trading since Thursday morning, notified the Hong Kong stock exchange during the noon break on Friday that it had received a resignation letter from Poon on Wednesday and had been unable to reach him.

A company spokeswoman had told the South China Morning Post on Thursday that Poon was on leave since May 18. Several people with business contacts with China Aircraft  said Poon had disappeared more than a month ago amid speculation that he was involved in investigations related to the company’s  first customer, China Southern Airlines. The mainland’s largest airline was at the centre of a graft probe earlier this year that saw the removal of four senior executives in one week, including its chief financial officer.

China Aircraft  said in the exchange announcement that Poon’s letter did not give reasons for his resignation, nor did it address media reports over his disappearance.

It said it is “unable to verify” news reports but had reviewed its dealings with China Southern Airlines and found “no irregularities”, and that the company or its directors had received no inquiries from the Chinese government.

China Aircraft,  founded by Poon in 2006, did sale-and-lease-back of five planes with the airline between September 2007 and October 2008 and a further two in 2013, according to its listing prospectus.

China Aircraft  chairman Chen Shuang, who is also chief executive of China Everbright,  the leasing firm’s  largest shareholder since 2011, took up Poon’s job on Thursday, the announcement said.

In a separate announcement, the company said chief financial officer Yu Tai Tei tendered his resignation on May 22  “to pursue other personal goals” and ceased to hold that role on Thursday.

 On Wednesday, Yu told Daiwa Securities that Poon’s annual leave arrangement was “normal”, according to a research note by Daiwa analyst Kelvin Lau dated Thursday.

China Aircraft  said Barry Mok Chung Tat, who joined this month, became Yu’s replacement with effect on Thursday.

Lau wrote in that note, in reaction to media reports of Poon’s disappearance, that “the worst-case scenario would be China Everbright taking over the shares of Mike Poon. This would not affect the business as [China Aircraft’s]  recent fast growth was partly reliant on the China Everbright relationship and improving its management team.”

According to exchange filings, China Aircraft  is 42.91 per cent owned by Everbright, 33.72 per cent by Poon through his firm Friedmann Pacific Asset Management and 5.87 per cent by China Huarong Asset Management, a firm under the Finance Ministry that is planning a Hong Kong IPO.

China Aircraft  shares closed at HK$9.65 on Friday; they resumed trading after the lunch break.