Mainland regulators have withdrawn listing approval for Jilin Tonghai Hi-tech Shareholding two years after fraud allegations halted its debut on the Shenzhen exchange.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said Tonghai falsified profits in listing documents, and ordered it to return publicly raised funds.
An announcement carried by major mainland financial newspapers on Saturday said: 'The CSRC has, according to the law, moved the case to law enforcement agencies for criminal investigations.'
The criminal probes into Tonghai's major management personnel are likely to renew controversies surrounding businessman Wong Shi-ling, chairman of the struggling Hong Kong-listed pair Leading Spirit High-Tech and China DigiContent.
In 1997 he lost millions of dollars on red-chip speculation, contributing to the collapse of CA Pacific, which lent heavily to him.
Hong Kong regulators have also investigated his firms for share manipulation. Tonghai was set up in August 1998 as a manufacturer of thin film transistor-liquid crystal display panels. Prior to its initial public offering, it was 50.81 per cent held by state-owned Jilin Electronics Group.
Last year, Guangdong's 21st Century Business Herald reported another founding shareholder, Jiangmen Conrowa Group, could trace its roots to Mr Wong and was partly controlled by his brother.
