(China) – The biggest foreign exchange player in China’s banking industry, Bank of China, has confirmed close to half a billion dollars has disappeared from a southern branch as a result of money laundering and questionable loans.Over US$483 million has gone missing through apparent money laundering and lending violations at its Kaiping branch in Guangdong, with an active global effort now underway to trace the money.
Bank of China has also just been slapped with a US$20 million fine by US regulators, casting some cloud over the Bank’s plans to list in an up to US$5 billion IPO.