Ex-head of finance watchdog faces probe
The former head of China’s top securities regulator has been put under investigation by the country’s anti-corruption watchdog on suspicion of violating laws, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said yesterday.
Liu Shiyu had voluntarily surrendered and was cooperating with the National Supervisory Commission for the investigation, the corruption watchdog said in a statement on its website.
He became the head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission in 2016 before stepping down in January this year to take up the post of deputy Party chief of the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives.
Established in July 1950 and led by the State Council, China’s Cabinet, the federation is a syndicate of grassroots supply cooperatives. The ACFSMC was the command center for the nation’s communes and collective farms, coordinating the production and distribution of fruits, cotton and grains, farm animals and even honey.
Liu rose through the ranks of the state’s banking system, spending most of this time at the PBOC after a stint as chairman of Agricultural Bank of China.
Liu took over the leadership of CSRC following a turbulent period in the country’s stock markets. When he joined the CSRC, the Shanghai Composite Index, China’s primary gauge, was down almost 50 percent from its peak eight months earlier and scandals were rife.
His tenure has been controversial among investors, with some praising his crackdown on speculative activities and others blaming him for sapping market vigor.