Baidu Says CFO Died in Accident

Baidu(BIDU Quote) said over the weekend that its chief financial officer, Shawn Wang, has died.

In a news release, the Chinese Internet search provider said Wang died Thursday "in an accident in China during the Christmas holiday vacation," but provided no further details on his death.

The company said senior management will take over Wang's duties until it can find a successor.

Wang joined Baidu as its CFO in September 2004 and helped lead the company through its Nasdaq IPO in August 2005. Its shares have enjoyed a stratospheric rise since their public debut at $27 and closed Friday's session down $10.33 at $398.87.