Securities regulator division chief detained after stocks plummet

The division chief at the China Securities Regulatory Commission’s department of public offering supervision, Li Zhiling, was fired and detained by police investigating abuses of power on Saturday after her spouse was found to have illegally traded shares, South China Morning Post reported, citing a statement from the commission. The detention came one day after the Shanghai Composite Index finished a week-long drop of 13.3%, the largest weekly decline among major global equity indicators since the financial crisis. The Post cited an unnamed source as saying Li’s division was regarded as powerful since firms seeking share placements needed its approval before raising fresh capital.