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It has been revealed by Chinese media This week it was reported that Yao Qian, the former architect of China’s digital yuan, received more than $8 million in cryptocurrency cases while holding senior positions.
The case shows how fraudsters have taken advantage of the same blockchain technology that Yao helped develop to hide illegal transactions through hardware wallets and anonymous transfers.
State broadcaster CCTV revealed details of Yao’s plot on January 14 in a documentary titled ” Technology that helps fight corruption “, which explains how investigators traced 2,000 Ethereum (worth 60 million yuan at high prices) from a trader to Yao’s wallet in 2018.
The former director of the People’s Bank of China Cryptocurrency Research Institute used multiple fake accounts and blockchain addresses to hide bribes worth about 22 million yuan ($3.1 million) in fiat currency along with major cryptocurrencies.
The hardware governor revealed the impact of corruption
Investigators found three hardware bags in Yao’s closet, each of which looked like USB devices but contained millions of yuan in cryptocurrency.
” These three small bags contained millions of yuan “, said Zhou Rong, an employee of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection at the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
Although Yao believes that the real money is unknown, the transparency of the blockchain technology helped the researchers to reconstruct the entire transaction history, linking the bribes directly to his wallets.
The investigation revealed that Yao bought a house in Beijing worth more than 20 million yuan using funds that track cryptocurrency trading platforms, including a single payment of 10 million yuan transferred from digital assets.
Authorities were able to hack into fake accounts run by relatives and middlemen, clearly proving that businessman Wang transferred 12 million yuan through an information company in exchange for positions.
” They believe that after creating several layers, the system will be self-contained “, said Shi Changping of the Shanwei City Disciplinary Inspection Commission, adding that several parties have already strengthened a lot of evidence.
Yao’s official bank accounts showed no wrongdoing, but a check with government databases revealed accounts opened under other identities that he secretly controlled.
These fake accounts received a large amount of transfers that investigators tracked down four levels to cryptocurrency fund accounts, which were eventually linked to his real estate purchases and suspicious activities with tech service providers.
Crypto bribery network sponsored by the underworld
Jiang Guoqing, Yao’s long-time successor from the People’s Bank to the Securities Regulatory Commission, acted as the main broker of cryptocurrency corruption.
” I created a transfer address where people send money, and then sent it to Yao Qian’s wallet “, Jiang admitted, admitting that he benefited from helping to sell power and money.
In 2018, Jiang contacted businessman Zhang Biao, who used his influence in the industry to help Zhang’s company issue tokens and raise 20,000 ETH through cryptocurrency exchange, for 2,000 ETH.
Jiang told the researchers: Yao Qian has a lot of influence in the industry because of her position “, explaining how the authority of the authority was translated to access the cryptocurrency market.
In addition to digital corruption, prosecutors also wrote that Yao received expensive gifts, organized lavish parties, harassed employees, and controlled the purchase of software and technology providers while working for the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
The investigation also revealed that Yao practiced superstitions (a culture banned under the Communist Party rule) and established relationships with people who were called “main training targets” for immoral activities.
Yao was expelled from the Communist Party in November 2024 and put on trial after an investigation. Confirmation related to the closure of the evidence “By combining blockchain literature with financial experts.
His case provided important information to Chinese authorities investigating money laundering, with investigators confirming that ” Cryptocurrencies are worthless if they cannot be converted into money – when real assets eventually become real assets, their true nature becomes more easily apparent. “.
The house that Yao bought with the cryptocurrencies transferred was still unfinished when the authorities arrested him, creating visible evidence that exposed a digital fraud scheme that spanned decades of governance.
The digital yuan continues its journey despite obstacles
Yao’s downfall has not dampened digital currency ambitions at China’s central bank, as the People’s Bank of China is set to implement a new system on January 1 that allows commercial banks to charge interest on yuan wallets.
China’s PBOC has launched a digital yuan action plan in the coming year, to improve CBDC management and financial infrastructure. #PBOC #DigitalYuan #ChinaCBDChttps://t.co/sKEBAfgcve
– Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) December 29, 2025
The move tackles long-term adoption challenges, with China’s e-currency transactions totaling 3.48 billion yuan worth 16.7 trillion yuan as of November 2025, but still lagging behind Alipay and WeChat Pay, which control more than 90% of China’s mobile payment market.
A note A Chinese digital yuan expert has been charged with involvement in an $8 million cryptocurrency bribery scandal appeared for the first time Cryptonews Arabic.
