Author: CCTV.com
Executive Producer | Li Shaofei
Edited by Shan Jingyu
Proofread by Meng Xia
Source: CCTV News
The fourth episode of the TV documentary series "Never Stop, Never Back Down," jointly produced by the Publicity Department of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission and CCTV, aired on CCTV-1 at 8 p.m. on January 14, titled "Technology Empowers Anti-Corruption," and was simultaneously broadcast on CCTV News' new media platform.
Besides the spatial separation between domestic and international locations, the physical separation between online and offline activities has also become a means for corrupt officials to conceal their corrupt practices. Gold, cash, and valuables are common vehicles for power-for-money transactions in traditional corruption cases. However, with the advent of the digital age and the continuous development of virtual currencies based on blockchain technology, new forms of corruption have emerged that require vigilance.
These are key pieces of evidence seized in a case involving violations of discipline and law by leading cadres. Some look like mobile phones, some like USB flash drives, and some like remote controls. In fact, they are all different types of hardware wallets used to store and manage cryptocurrency. The cryptocurrency stored in these three seemingly insignificant little "wallets" is valued at tens of millions of yuan. Those who accepted bribes in this way also harbored illusions, believing they were sufficiently discreet.
Yao Qian, former director of the Science and Technology Supervision Department of the China Securities Regulatory Commission: To be honest, you knew it was a clandestine act, so how could you do it? It's just that you thought it would be difficult to find evidence before.
Yao Qian, former director of the Science and Technology Supervision Department and former director of the Information Center of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), and former director of the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People's Bank of China, was placed under investigation in April 2024. A special task force composed of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission's disciplinary inspection and supervision group stationed at the CSRC, and the Supervisory Commission of Shanwei City, Guangdong Province, handled the case. From the outset, the task force conducted an in-depth analysis of Yao Qian's personal characteristics.
Zou Rong, a staff member of the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Group of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission stationed at the China Securities Regulatory Commission, stated: "Supervision of this person requires a profile. He has a relatively long history of work in the digital currency field. Does this also imply corruption involving the use of virtual currencies for power-for-money transactions? In the practice of anti-corruption in the capital market, new types of corruption and hidden corruption are particularly prominent issues."
As the investigation deepened, the task force's initial predictions were confirmed. Yao Qian's several large-scale bribery transactions all employed new and covert methods of corruption, including the acceptance of virtual currencies. Virtual currencies are merely strings of numbers on the internet, separate from the holder's identity and completely isolated from commercial banks and payment institutions. They can be freely traded on the blockchain, flowing across borders without geographical restrictions, making them extremely difficult to regulate. However, the task force had made thorough preparations from the outset, studying extensive professional knowledge to gain a deep understanding of the operating mechanisms of virtual currencies and identifying the key points for the investigation.
Zou Rong: The holder mainly controls the virtual currency on the blockchain address using a private key. This private key consists of a string of characters that is dozens of characters long, and it is not easy to remember. Generally, it is stored in a hardware wallet.
Cai Kunting, a staff member of the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Commission of Shanwei City, Guangdong Province: "When searching, we need to find two items. The first is whether there is a physical wallet; the second is whether there are any notes with random mnemonic phrases written on them. These are crucial in a search."
As expected, the task force found a hardware wallet in a drawer in Yao Qian's office. Simultaneously, strictly adhering to regulations and laws, and fully utilizing big data and information technology, the task force conducted a comprehensive investigation into Yao Qian's situation, uncovering relevant clues. While legally checking account information revealed no obvious abnormalities in Yao Qian's own accounts, cross-checking with big data revealed several bank accounts opened under other people's identities—actually Yao Qian's "shell accounts," controlled by him. Tracing the large sums of money entering and leaving these "shell accounts," one transaction of 10 million yuan led to a significant discovery.
Zou Rong: During the initial investigation, we also discovered an abnormal transfer of 10 million yuan to Yao Qian. After about four layers of investigation, we finally confirmed that it should have come from a cryptocurrency exchange's fund account.
The investigation revealed that shortly after the 10 million yuan entered Yao Qian's "shell account," it was used to pay part of the purchase price for a villa in Beijing. This villa, valued at over 20 million yuan, was registered under the name of a relative of Yao Qian, but was actually owned by Yao Qian. All the funds for the purchase came from Yao Qian's "shell account." In addition to this 10 million yuan, two other large sums totaling 12 million yuan were also used to pay for properties. Tracing the source of this 12 million yuan revealed an equally complex origin.
Shi Changping, a staff member of the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Commission of Shanwei City, Guangdong Province: He believed that after setting up multiple layers, the system would be more isolated. But conversely, there would be more people and more sufficient evidence to prove the existence of the problem.
The task force penetrated layers of deception, conducted in-depth investigations and collected evidence, and identified the source of the 12 million yuan. The money all came from an information service company controlled by businessman Wang. Further investigation revealed that Yao Qian had abused his power to assist the company in providing technology services in the securities and futures industry, thus establishing a complete chain of evidence linking the 12 million yuan in illicit gains.
Wang then confessed that a key middleman in this bribery deal was named Jiang Guoqing, Yao Qian's subordinate, with whom he had a very close relationship. The task force immediately placed Jiang Guoqing under detention. The investigation revealed that he was involved in almost every major bribery deal Yao Qian made, especially when Yao Qian accepted bribes in the form of virtual currency.
Jiang Guoqing, one of the individuals involved in the case: Originally, they wanted to transfer the money through me, but after thinking about it, I was afraid of causing trouble, so I set up a transfer address. Then, people would send the coins to the transfer address, and from there, they would be transferred to Yao Qian's personal wallet. I knew this was a transfer of benefits, and I was afraid of it. I also knew that what I was doing was wrong.
Jiang Guoqing followed Yao Qian to the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People's Bank of China and the Science and Technology Department of the China Securities Regulatory Commission. He was not only a trusted confidant of Yao Qian but also a henchman on Yao Qian's path to corruption. Many business owners who engaged in power-for-money transactions with Yao Qian were introduced or had their requests relayed by Jiang Guoqing, who also profited from the transactions.
In 2018, a cryptocurrency businessman surnamed Zhang, through Jiang Guoqing, asked Yao Qian to help his company with its token issuance and financing project. Yao Qian accepted the request, contacting a cryptocurrency exchange and helping Zhang's company successfully issue tokens and raise 20,000 Ethereum. Subsequently, Zhang gave Yao Qian 2,000 Ethereum as a thank you gift; at its peak, these Ethereum were valued at over 60 million yuan. The effectiveness of Yao Qian's intervention was undoubtedly related to his official influence.
Jiang Guoqing: Yao Qian has a great influence in the industry because of his position.
To further solidify the chain of evidence, the task force attempted to reconstruct the entire chain of Yao Qian's receipt and transfer of virtual currency on the blockchain, based on the characteristics of virtual currency.
Zou Rong: Cryptocurrencies are characterized by anonymity, but they are also a double-edged sword, having two sides because they are also publicly verifiable across the entire network. This means that anyone can view the cryptocurrency transfer records of any blockchain address at any time, which is determined by the decentralized nature of blockchain, thus also providing a degree of transparency.
Using blockchain technology, the task force traced the flow of 2,000 Ethereum from Zhang's Ethereum wallet address to Yao Qian's Ethereum wallet address in 2018, and also found a complete record of Yao Qian transferring 370 Ethereum out of the wallet in 2021 for 10 million yuan. The task force conducted electronic evidence collection in accordance with regulations and laws, achieving mutual corroboration and a closed loop of evidence. Faced with such a solid chain of evidence, Yao Qian had no choice but to admit his violations of discipline and law.
In November 2024, Yao Qian was expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office, and transferred to the procuratorate for review and prosecution. The successful handling of this case provided valuable experience for disciplinary and supervisory organs in investigating bribery related to virtual currency. Virtual currency may seem intangible, but once it is intended for use in the real world, it can no longer remain virtual and will inevitably be exposed somewhere. The villa Yao Qian purchased served as the "developer" that exposed him; the carefully constructed layers of deception ultimately could not escape being penetrated. When Yao Qian was detained, the villa's renovation was not yet complete, but he was already unable to move in.
Zou Rong: Cryptocurrency is useless if it can't be cashed out; it's just a string of numbers. When virtual assets eventually become real assets, their true nature is easily exposed.
Using cryptocurrencies to conceal ill-gotten gains is just one form of new and covert corruption. Under the high-pressure anti-corruption campaign, no matter how innovative or mutated the methods of corruption become, as long as we firmly grasp the essential characteristic of corruption—the exchange of power for money—strictly adhere to regulations, discipline, and the law, fully utilize big data and other information technologies, increase the intensity of identification and investigation, and continuously enrich effective prevention and control methods, no form of corruption will be able to hide.
