(Bloomberg) -- China relocated an official from Tibet to lead its crackdown on the financial sector, indicating no let-up in its unprecedented efforts to clean up the industry.
Wang Weidong was named chief of the Central Financial Discipline Inspection and Supervision Work Committee, according to an article published Monday by the top graft buster’s official newspaper. It marks the first reference to the special committee, which was newly set up within the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Caixin reported on Tuesday.
Wang pledged to strengthen political supervision and party building within the financial system as well “promptly discover deviations” and “vigorously implement rectification,” according to the article.
Wang resigned in March from a supervisory post in Tibet. Prior to that, he held various roles at the National Government Offices Administration as well as the CCDI.
China has tightened its grip on the $66 trillion finance industry, labeling bankers as “hedonistic” and emphasizing the Communist Party’s “centralized and unified leadership” of the sector. An anti-graft drive that was unleashed in 2021 has shocked the industry, bringing down more than 100 financial officials and executives last year alone.
The new financial corruption work committee suggests more permanent oversight of the industry. It follows an overhaul of China’s financial regulatory regime last year that saw the creation of an enlarged regulator as well as two financial bodies that oversee the sector’s development, ideology and discipline.
Authorities also pledged to improve its supervision mechanism for the financial sector at the Third Plenum last week, a twice-a-decade gathering where the top leaders map out long-term plans for the world’s second largest economy. It will also formulate a financial law to strengthen regulatory responsibilities and accountability.
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