Chinese texts are 11 years of regulatory authorities over a Bitcoin corruption incident

Table of Contents

The Beijing Court sentenced Hao Gang, former deputy director of the Beijing Financial Bureau, to 11 years in prison for bribery and Bitcoin-related money laundering.

This domination marks another important step in China’s crackdown on financial fraud related to cryptocurrency.

China is cracking down on Bitcoin-related corruption

The court reportedly ruled its verdict on Thursday, February 6, after a two-year investigation into the gang’s activities. Investigators discovered that he had accepted tens of millions of euros with bribery to support a Bitcoin mining company facing regulatory challenges.

Local reports also show that he helped senior executives at major mining companies avoid travel restrictions in exchange for illegal payments.

The court initially handed eight years for bribery and four years for money laundering, but later merged into an 11-year prison sentence. In addition to prison time, the gang received a fine of RMB1.3 million ($164,662).

Authorities also confiscated his illegally-earned income and redirected him to the state Treasury Department.

Hao Gang played an important role in Beijing’s financial sector before the investigation into his activities began. His beliefs reflect China’s strict stance on financial misconduct linked to Bitcoin. The ruling also shows continued crackdown on corruption within the sector.

This case follows a similarly well-known ruling. Last year, Chinese authorities sentenced government workers to life in prison to sell classified information to foreign intelligence reporting agencies. Individuals reportedly owned debts from failed crypto investments and relied on espionage in exchange for digital assets.

For many years, Chinese regulators have tightened restrictions that curb illegal crypto transactions, in line with the government’s longstanding stance on speculative investment in digital currencies.

However, China’s approach to cryptocurrency regulation is contradictory. One ruling categorized crypto transactions as gambling, but previous High Court decisions recognized digital assets as legal assets.

This contradiction reflects the government’s struggle to maintain financial stability while adapting to the changing digital economy.