China expels ex-chairman of Huarong over graft

The former chairman of China Huarong Asset Management Co., Lai Xiaomin, has been expelled from the Communist Party and will be prosecuted for suspected corruption, China’s top anti-graft agency said 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 wrongdoings, 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, in violation of political disciplines and the central government’s financial policy, was accused of “blindly and disorderly” expanding Huarong away from its core business, causing 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 said. 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 1 million party members, jailing top military figures and retired security tsar Zhou Yongkang.