Total U.S.-based venture-capital investment in China plummeted to $9.7 billion last year from $32.9 billion in 2021, PitchBook data shows.
"In finance, information is currency," said Yang, for whom a game of guandan has become a standard gambit before wining and dining local officials. Like bridge, the classic staple, the game is played among four players paired up in teams. Using two decks, players must throw down poker and other special card combinations to clear their hands before opponents.
While the players Reuters spoke to said they do not gamble, Chinese officials have been censured in the past for receiving bribes through the playing of card games or the traditional tile pastime of mahjong.