China Widens AstraZeneca Probe as Country Boss Investigated

AstraZeneca Plc’s China President Leon Wang is under investigation by the country’s authorities, as Beijing’s intensifying regulatory scrutiny on the British drug giant reaches its senior ranks.

Wang is cooperating and, if requested, Astra too will “fully cooperate with the investigation,” the British company said without revealing further details about the probe.

Leon Wang

Photographer: Han Haidan/China News Service/Getty Images

Wang’s involvement is a significant escalation of China’s probe into the company, after police detained multiple current and former Astra employees for questioning earlier this year over potential illegal activities. It’s a sign that Beijing is widening its scrutiny of Astra’s operations in mainland China, a worrying ...