China targets financial sector in new push against corruption Business and Economics

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The Chinese Government’s Community Party has focused on the country’s broad financial sector this month, launching a new year-long campaign to expose corruption and illegal businesses.
The country’s top anti-corruption watchdog has begun an inspection of more than 20 organizations in about two months, including the central bank, the banking and insurance regulator, stock exchanges, commercial and asset management companies, the first coordinated audit of the sector. 2015.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is examining the relationships developed by state-owned banks and other financial institutions with large private companies, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people with knowledge of the plan.
The audits are a comprehensive “political analysis” of the commissions of financial institutions and regulatory parties, according to a statement issued by the Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CCDI) on Tuesday.
CCDI inspectors will look for any violation of political discipline, a euphemism for the corruption party.
The inspections follow a call by China’s top anti-corruption official Zhao Leji in late September to conduct in-depth inspections at 25 state financial institutions and regulators ’Party organizations.
Since the end of 2020, Beijing has been advocating for “preventing the disorderly expansion of capital” by launching a crackdown on technology giants and private education companies.
The campaign is aimed at preventing the “wild growth” of some platforms in order to counter their monopolistic and unfair competition.
“The latest central inspection … will certainly emphasize Xi’s call to prevent a disorderly expansion of capital,” said Feng Chucheng, a partner at the Plenum, an independent research firm.
“Party leaders probably realized that after the events of last year, including the Ant IPO, Didi IPO and the latest in the property market, they need a more comprehensive approach to managing systematic financial risks,” Feng said.
When the sector was last inspected in 2015, at least hundreds of bankers and executives were also censored and fired. Among the violations were the organization of prohibited internal banquets and the acceptance of customer vacations.
In 2017, Xiang Junbo, the former president of China’s insurance regulator, was removed from office after years of investigation by one of the top financial regulators. Xiang was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2020.
In January this year, China executed Lai Xiaomin, the former head of the disputed China Huarong Asset Management Co., after pleading guilty to bribery of 1.7 billion yuan ($ 280 million).
On Monday, CCDI said the former chairman of the Chang’an Bank and head of the party, located in northwestern Shaanxi province, had been expelled from the Party and public office for corruption.
In recent months, Chinese regulators have also shifted to sectors from technology to education and property, targeting some of the country’s largest companies, such as Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings.
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