China executes a former high-ranking bank official for taking over $156m in bribes
China's state media reported that a former top official from a major state-controlled asset management company was executed for corruption.
Bai Tianhui, the former general manager of China Huarong International Holdings (CHIH), was put to death in Tianjin on Tuesday, December 8, 2025.
The media did not specify how the execution took place.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, Bai was found guilty of taking over $156 million (about R2.66 billion) in bribes while helping secure favorable treatment for projects between 2014 and 2018.
China Huarong International Holdings is a subsidiary of China Huarong Asset Management, which handles bad debts and is one of the biggest asset management firms in the country.
Huarong has been under intense scrutiny as part of President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption drive.
Its former chairman, Lai Xiaomin, was executed in January 2021 for accepting bribes worth about $253 million.
Other Huarong officials have also been caught in corruption investigations.
In China, death sentences for corruption are typically given with a two-year delay, after which they are often changed to life in prison.
However, Bai's sentence, handed down in May 2024 by a court in Tianjin, was not delayed.
He challenged the verdict, but it was confirmed in February.
The Supreme People's Court, China's top court, approved the ruling, stating that Bai's actions were "extremely serious."
The court said Bai accepted bribes of an exceptionally large amount, the circumstances were especially bad, and the harm to the state and people was significant.
China treats death penalty statistics as a state secret.
However, groups like Amnesty International believe that thousands of people are executed each year.
Bai is the most recent high-ranking individual to be punished as part of China's long-running anti-corruption effort in the financial sector.
In September, Yi Huiman, the former head of China's top securities regulator, was investigated for corruption.
In March, Li Xiaopeng, former head of Everbright Group, a state-owned bank, was given 15 years in prison for taking bribes worth 60 million yuan.
In November 2024, Liu Liange, former chairman of the Bank of China, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for accepting bribes totaling 121 million yuan.
Some supporters say the anti-corruption campaign helps keep government clean, while critics argue it allows President Xi to remove political opponents.