Founder of Chinese energy firm Hanergy Li Hejun reportedly detained by police
- The businessman, who was once classed as China’s richest man, was taken away last month in the northeastern city of Jinzhou, according to Caixin magazine
- Li has previously been banned from acting as a director in Hong Kong after a 2015 share price crash where his company lost almost half its value in minutes
Li, the founder of the Hanergy group, was taken away by police in Jinzhou, a city in the northeastern province of Liaoning on December 17, the financial magazine Caixin reported on Wednesday, citing multiple unidentified former Hanergy employees.
Caixin’s report said Li had not yet returned as of Tuesday and the reason for his detention was unclear.
Jiemian News, quoting an unnamed source, said Li’s detention may be related to the troubled Bank of Jinzhou, his biggest lender.
The bank said it gave nearly 10 billion yuan (US$1.5 billion) to the energy group when its subsidiary Hanergy Thin Film made an initial public offering on the Hong Kong stock exchange in 2015. It raised HK$6 billion (US$765 million) in the IPO.
Li was ranked by the Hurun Report as China’s wealthiest man in 2015 with US$26 billion to his name thanks to a more-than-sevenfold rise in Hanergy’s share price within 12 months.