HONG KONG (Nov 26): A court in China's Shandong province gave former Bank of China chairman Liu Liange a suspended death sentence on Tuesday for bribery and illegal loan issuance, state media reported.

He was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, the reports said, meaning the sentence will only be carried out if he commits further crimes during the period. If reprieved, he would have a life sentence.

Liu, born in 1961, had been working in banking and finance institutions, including in the People's Bank of China central bank and the Export-Import Bank of China, before he was promoted to become chairman of the Bank of China in 2019.

In October last year, China's ruling Communist Party expelled the former chairman, accusing him of illegal activities and taking bribes.

Reuters was not able to contact Liu for comment.

China's anti-graft watchdog has in recent months launched a crackdown on the financial sector that has ensnared some of the country’s biggest names, including Liu and former deputy central bank governor, Fan Yifei, who was sentenced to death in October for taking bribes, also with a two-year reprieve.

The court said that Liu took advantage of his position to seek promotions for many people and that the amount of bribes accepted was "particularly huge" at more than 121 million yuan (US$17 million or RM75.9 million), state broadcaster CCTV said.

As Liu "truthfully confessed" the crime and most of the stolen money and property in the case has been recovered, the death penalty would not be immediately enforced, the court said.

Liu, during his tenure at China Export Import Bank and Bank of China, violated laws by approving over 3.32 billion yuan in loans, causing a loss of more than 190 million yuan, CCTV said.

Uploaded by Magessan Varatharaja