CHINA'S richest man, the $US6 billion ($A9.5 billion) electronics magnate Huang Guangyu, has disappeared from his home into a vortex of speculation about corruption and stock market manipulation.

A source close to Mr Huang's company, Gome Electrical Appliances, said his colleagues had no idea where their chairman had gone.

Magnate Huang Guangyu. Credit:Greg Baker

Chinese and Hong Kong media said he was being questioned by the Public Security Bureau, with some reports focusing on stockmarket manipulation, others on corruption and one Hong Kong report referring to general "bribery and embezzlement earlier in Mr Huang's career".

The media's enthusiasm for the story, despite the absence of any official confirmation, illustrates how many Chinese journalists and readers have come to expect that successful business people and officials cut corners to succeed.