Former China Life Chairman Expelled From Party for Bribery

What’s new: Wang Bin, a former chairman of China Life Insurance (Group) Co., has been expelled from the Communist Party and dismissed from public office for serious duty violations and corruption, China’s top anti-graft watchdog said Thursday.

Wang, 63, who was also the state-owned insurer’s party committee chief, was found to have engaged in financial corruption, including illegally accepting cash and gifts as well as abusing his power to help with business deals and loans in return for large sums of money, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a statement.

Not only did Wang fail to implement the party’s directions on preventing and defusing financial risks, he created and amplified risks in the sector, according to the statement.

The CCDI did not clarify when the corruption took place, but people familiar with the matter previously told Caixin that Wang’s problems might have begun during his previous jobs in the state-owned financial sector.

The background: In 2018, Wang became chairman of China Life, one of the country’s largest insurers by premiums. Prior to that, he chaired the board of directors at China Taiping Insurance Group Ltd., another state-owned major. He also worked in the country’s central bank and a number of financial institutions, including policy lender the Agricultural Development Bank of China and Bank of Communications Co. Ltd. (601328.SH), public records show.

Wang was placed under investigation in January as China continued to crack down on financial industry misconduct amid the country’s almost decade-long anti-corruption campaign. The party launched a two-month inspection late last year into 25 financial organizations including China Life.

The investigation into Wang was sudden, but not unexpected, people familiar with China Life and Taiping previously told Caixin, as several of his past colleagues had been caught by corruption probes in recent years.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use. To read the full story in Chinese, click here.

Contact reporter Kelsey Cheng (kelseycheng@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)

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