Former Huarong chairman facing corruption prosecution after being expelled from Communist Party

Lai Xiaomin, the former chairman of China Huarong Asset Management, has been expelled from the Communist Party and will be prosecuted for suspected corruption, China’s top anti-graft agency said on Monday.

Lai, one of the most senior executives to be brought to book in China’s anti-corruption campaign, was accused of a long list of wrongdoing, from cronyism and taking bribes to the embezzlement of public property, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a statement on its website.

Lai was accused of “blindly and disorderly” expanding Huarong away from its core business in violation of political discipline and the central government’s financial policy, causing an adverse impact, the commission said.

It was not possible to reach Lai or a representative for comment.

Lai engaged in political opportunism and careerism, exchanged power for sex with several women, and flouted frugality rules by frequently accepting entertainment from private business owners in private clubs and high-end restaurants, it continued.

Lai had also arranged company-paid travel for relatives and allowed them to use his influence to seek profit, the CCDI said.

President Xi Jinping has presided over a far-reaching anti-corruption drive since coming to power in 2012, punishing more than a million party members, jailing top military figures as well as retired security tsar Zhou Yongkang, the most senior official toppled for corruption since 1949.