A Chinese court delivered a rare death sentence on May 28 to Bai Tianhui, a former senior banker, for accepting bribes worth over 1.1 billion yuan (US$151 million). The Secondary Intermediate People’s Court of Tianjin found Bai guilty of using his position as general manager of China Huarong International Holdings (CHIH) to facilitate acquisitions and financing projects in exchange for bribes.
Severe penalties imposed
Along with the death sentence, Bai was permanently stripped of his political rights, and all his personal property was confiscated. Despite providing information leading to other arrests and convictions, the court deemed the scale of Bai’s bribery and its social impact too severe for leniency.
State broadcaster CCTV reported the ruling but did not disclose Bai’s plea or whether he plans to appeal. Legal experts suggest Bai might appeal, referencing similar cases like Zhang Zhongsheng, whose death sentence for accepting 1.17 billion yuan in bribes was commuted to life imprisonment after an appeal.
Context of corruption crackdown
Death sentences in corruption cases are rare in China, especially without suspension. Bai is the second official from China Huarong to receive such a sentence. In January 2021, Lai Xiaomin, former chairperson of China Huarong Asset Management and Bai’s former boss, was executed for taking 1.79 billion yuan (US$247 million) in bribes, embezzling public assets, and bigamy.
Four other senior executives from Huarong, including Wang Pinghua and Qin Ling, are awaiting trial on corruption charges. This ruling is part of a broader crackdown on corruption in China’s finance sector, led by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI). Since January, over 30 state regulators, bankers, and senior financial executives have been detained.
President Xi Jinping has emphasized stringent measures to address “repeated financial disorders and corruption, and weak financial supervision and governance capacity” as part of his goal to transform China into a financial superpower and mitigate financial risks.