The case comes around the same time a Japanese pharmaceutical executive was imprisoned, adding to growing unease even as Beijing tries to court overseas investors.

Fears that employees of foreign firms risk entanglement with Chinese authorities have resurfaced after news that an employee of U.S. bank Wells Fargo has been banned from leaving the country.

Wells Fargo has reportedly suspended business travel to China after one of its executives was barred from leaving the country. Why it matters: The episode could renew concerns among businesses about sending executives to China amid international tensions.

A Wells Fargo executive who was born in Shanghai and works in Atlanta has been detained in China for reasons unknown. Chenyue Mao, a managing director at Wells Fargo, has been banned from leaving the country,

Managing director Chenyue Mao, a U.S. citizen and head of the bank's international factoring unit, remains in China as the bank works to secure her return.