Top banker detained over graft probe

The detention of Bao Fan, chairman of the investment bank China Renaissance (1911), is related to an earlier investigation into Cong Lin, China Renaissance's former president, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The star banker has been detained since February by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the report said.

Bao is being held under a special form of detention known as "liuzhi", or "retention in custody," where a person may be detained for as long as six months without any access to a lawyer, the report said, adding it remains unclear if Bao will be formally arrested and charged.

Before the detention, authorities had spoken to Bao several times regarding the probe of Cong. Bao was queried about a suspected quid pro quo involving a loan that Cong helped arrange for China Renaissance before joining the firm.