China has released five employees of an American corporate investigations firm, the Mintz Group, two years after they were detained as part of a crackdown by Beijing on foreign business consultancies. The firm, in a statement on Tuesday, expressed gratitude to the Chinese authorities for the release of the employees, who are all Chinese nationals.

The release comes as China tries to revive overseas investment in order to help revitalize its sluggish economy. Dozens of foreign executives, including Tim Cook of Apple and Cristiano Amon of Qualcomm, are currently in Beijing to attend a development forum. Foreign investment, which declined during the pandemic, has not yet recovered due to the weak sales and overall demand in the Chinese economy.

Several global company executives are expected to meet with China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, on Friday in Beijing. The gathering will mark the third time in 17 months that Mr. Xi has met with multinational company leaders. The business forum is also being attended by Senator Steve Daines of Montana, who is trying to lay the groundwork for a meeting between President Trump and Mr. Xi.

The Mintz employees who were detained were part of a raid on the company’s Beijing office in March 2023. China fined the company $1.5 million for engaging in “foreign-related statistical investigation activities without obtaining approval.” Mintz, which is based in New York but has offices around the world, specializes in due diligence work, including background checks and fraud investigations.

Chinese authorities have targeted this type of work, viewing it as a threat to national security and the ruling Communist Party’s power. Bail & Company, another US management consulting firm, was also targeted in the crackdown.

Berry Wang contributed reporting from Hong Kong.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/24/world/asia/china-mintz-release-us.html