China probes market watchdog's vice-chair over selloff

Hong Kong

CHINA'S top graft-buster announced an investigation into a senior official at the nation's securities regulator on Friday, as the government deepens its crackdown on the financial industry in the wake of a US$5 trillion stock-market selloff.

Yao Gang, one of four vice- chairmen at the China Securities Regulatory Commission(CSRC), is under investigation for "alleged serious disciplinary violations", the Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said in a statement on its website, employing language that often refers to corruption probes. Mr Yao, 53, assumed his post in 2008 and had been put in charge of the regulator's issuance department since 2002, according to the statement. He couldn't be reached for comment.