China: Former top bank boss gets suspended death sentence over bribery charges

The former head of a sizable Chinese bank with government support received a suspended death sentence on Monday for bribery, marking the latest development in a campaign against financial sector misconduct. Since taking office ten years ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping has launched an extensive battle against pervasive government corruption; yet, detractors claim that this strategy has assisted him in eliminating political competitors. According to official media, Tian Huiyu, the former president of China Merchants Bank, was sentenced to death on Monday, with a two-year reprieve that could result in a life sentence. According to state broadcaster CCTV, Tian was found guilty of decades of “abusing state-owned company staff power, trading on undisclosed information, insider trading, and leaking inside information” in addition to “accepting bribes.” When the anti-graft movement shifted its attention to some of the nation’s top financiers, Tian was the subject of a public inquiry for the first time in April 2022. Former vice president of the China Development Bank Zhou Qingyu was detained in December on bribery charges. The state-owned Chinese banking behemoth Everbright Group’s former chairman was detained in January on charges of bribery and misconduct. He Xingxiang, a former senior officer at the China Development Bank, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for bribery earlier this month. (With agency inputs)