China’s central bank deputy governor under probe for suspected violations

China’s central bank Deputy Governor Fan Yifei is under investigation by an anti-graft agency, the latest high-level finance official to be probed as President Xi Jinping cracks down on corruption.

Fan is being investigated for “suspected severe violations of discipline and laws,” according to a statement from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party’s top graft buster. Fan has served as a deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China since 2015, according to his resume on the central bank website.

Fan’s name was no longer on a list of PBOC’s top executives on its website soon after announcement, though the central bank hasn’t made an announcement on any changes or commented on the probe.

Fan’s probe comes at a delicate time, with the PBOC facing a potential change in leadership. Governor Yi Gang and Party Secretary Guo Shuqing may step down from their positions early next year after both exited the party’s elite central committee at a twice-a-decade congress in October.

—Bloomberg