What’s new: Xiang Junbo, a former chairman of the now-defunct China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), has been sentenced to 11 years behind bars and fined 1.5 million yuan ($211,477) for taking bribes, a court ruled Tuesday.
From 2005 to 2017, Xiang accepted bribes worth more than 18.6 million yuan in exchange for favors he made by taking advantage of his positions at the CIRC, the country’s central bank and state-owned Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., state media cited (link in Chinese) a court in the eastern province of Jiangsu as saying.
What’s the background: In recent years, China’s sweeping campaign to clean up corruption in both financial regulation and industries has put multiple high-ranking regulators and tycoons behind bars.
In April 2017, Xiang fell under a graft probe that eventually led to Tuesday’s sentence. The investigation came after a tough crackdown on insurers whose expansion relied heavily on selling high-risk policies allowed by loose rules introduced under Xiang’s watch.
Related stories:
Who Greased Palms of Felled Insurance Regulator?
In Depth: Who Was China’s Fallen Insurance Regulator Xiang Junbo?
In Depth: After Fall of Chief Regulator, What’s Next for Chinese Insurers?
Contact reporter Lin Jinbing (jinbinglin@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)
