A senior Wells Fargo banker is barred from leaving China while authorities investigate a criminal case involving her, Beijing says, sparking fears among foreign businesses over the use of exit bans.
Chenyue Mao, Shanghai-born managing director at the US bank, landed in China recently on a business trip. She’s not yet charged with any offence but is required to remain in China to cooperate with the investigation, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Her exit ban comes at a tense moment in US-China relations as the two countries wrangle over trade policies.
“Ms Mao Chenyue is involved in a criminal case currently being handled by Chinese authorities who have lawfully imposed exit restrictions on her,” ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a regular press briefing on Monday.
He didn’t provide further details about the case or specify Ms Mao’s alleged role in it. The case has not been publicly linked to any business dispute or specific allegations.
The exit ban on Ms Mao came amid growing diplomatic strain between Washington and Beijing and prompted Wells Fargo to halt all employee travel to mainland China, reported the Wall Street Journal.
The bank, headquartered in San Francisco, said in a brief statement that it was “closely tracking this situation and working through the appropriate channels so our employee can return to the United States as soon as possible”, CNN reported.
It was unclear if Ms Mao still held Chinese citizenship, Reuters reported, quoting unnamed sources as saying she was a US national.
Ms Mao has been at Wells Fargo since 2012. She leads the bank’s international factoring business, a form of trade finance in which companies sell their receivables to third parties to obtain immediate cash. She advises multinational firms on working capital strategies for cross-border transactions.
Three weeks before the exit ban was imposed, she was elected chair of FCI, formerly Factors Chain International, a global trade finance association with nearly 400 members worldwide, including 48 in China.
“I am excited for what lies ahead,” she told an industry conference in Rio de Janeiro, according to a post on her LinkedIn, “together we will go far.”
She travelled to China shortly after the conference but was prevented from returning to the US. She lives in Alpharetta, Georgia.
An automated out-of-office reply from her email continues to state she is travelling internationally.
Wells Fargo has a relatively limited footprint in China than other global banks but maintains offices in Beijing and Shanghai. According to two sources familiar with the matter, the company is quietly seeking clarification through diplomatic and legal channels, hoping to avoid further complications by maintaining a low profile.
Exit bans are not new in China but are increasingly drawing concern from foreign firms and governments. Often imposed without formal charges, such bans are used in a range of scenarios, including regulatory probes, civil disputes, or criminal investigations. The scope and legal grounds are rarely made public and the affected individuals are often left in legal limbo for extended periods.
Two individuals familiar with how exit bans are enforced in China said they were typically initiated by local authorities and could stem from anything ranging from financial disagreements to allegations of improper business conduct. Factoring, the financial service in which Mao specialises, can become legally complex in China due to strict capital controls and regulatory scrutiny over cross-border payments.
Ms Mao’s case emerged alongside similar reports of foreign nationals facing travel restrictions. According to the Washington Post, a Chinese-American employee of the US Department of Commerce has been prevented from leaving China after failing to declare his government employment on a visa application. The man, who works at the US Patent and Trademark Office, had gone to visit family several months ago. Chinese authorities have not confirmed his identity or provided details of the case.
Beijing insists such exit restrictions are lawful and do not reflect a broader policy shift. “This is an individual judicial case and China will continue to welcome people from all countries to visit and do business, while upholding their rights in accordance with the law,” the foreign ministry spokesperson said, according to CNN, referring to Ms Mao’s case.
“Everyone in China, whether they are Chinese or foreigners, must abide by Chinese laws,” he was quoted as saying by Reuters.
However, business groups and rights organisations warn that the increased use of exit bans poses a serious reputational and operational risk for international firms.
“The signal it should send is that no one is safe when travelling to China,” said Laura Harth, China in the World director at Safeguard Defenders, a human rights advocacy group. “Too often companies and countries prefer to remain silent in the hopes of improving or accelerating the process.”
The Wells Fargo case is the latest in a string of incidents involving foreign executives facing legal action or detention in China.
In recent years, senior personnel from AstraZeneca, the risk consultancy Kroll and Japanese pharmaceutical firm Astellas have all been restricted from leaving the country amid various investigations.
The US State Department currently advises American citizens to “exercise increased caution” when travelling to China, citing the risk of arbitrary enforcement of local laws, including exit bans.
The advisory warns that individuals may be detained or barred from departing China without transparent legal procedures, particularly in cases involving state security or business disputes.
Chinese officials continue to maintain these are isolated incidents. Still, the steady rise in reported cases is expected to further unsettle executives and investors considering travel to the country, particularly those of Chinese descent with foreign passports, who may be more vulnerable to legal ambiguities under Chinese jurisdiction.
