Bai Tianhui's death sentence is upheld in the second instance Photo: Supreme People's Court

A former executive of a Chinese financial firm Bai Tianhui was lawfully executed by the Tianjin No.2 Intermediate People's Court on Tuesday morning, following approval by the Supreme People's Court, according to a statement released on the official WeChat account of the Tianjin High People's Court. 

On May 28, 2024, the Tianjin No.2 Intermediate People's Court sentenced defendant Bai to death for accepting bribes, deprived him of political rights for life, and ordered the confiscation of all his personal property.

After Bai appealed, the Tianjin High People's Court, following a trial, rejected the appeal and upheld the original sentence on February 24, 2025, subsequently submitting the case to the Supreme People's Court for review and approval in accordance with the law.

Following its review, the Supreme People's Court confirmed that from 2014 to 2018, the defendant Bai exploited his positions of authority — including as head of the third business development department, general manager, and managing director of the investment banking department of Huarong (Hong Kong) International Holdings Co., Ltd., as well as capital operations director, assistant general manager, deputy general manager, and general manager of China Huarong International Holdings Co., Ltd.—to seek benefits for relevant entities in matters such as project acquisitions and corporate financing. In return, he illegally accepted money and property, with the total value amounting to over 1.108 billion yuan ($152.8 million).

The Supreme People's Court determined that the defendant Bai's actions constituted the crime of bribery. The amount of bribes involved was particularly huge, the circumstances of the crime were especially severe, the social impact was particularly egregious, and it caused especially significant losses to the interests of the state and the people. The crime was deemed extremely serious, warranting severe punishment in accordance with the law. 

The facts found in the first-instance verdict and the second-instance ruling of this case were clear, the evidence was reliable and sufficient, the conviction was accurate, and the sentencing was appropriate. The trial procedures were lawful. Accordingly, the Supreme People's Court approved the criminal ruling of the Tianjin High People's Court upholding the first-instance death sentence for Bai, the statement reads. 

Prior to the execution on Tuesday, Bai was allowed to meet with his close relatives.

Bai was a close associate of Lai Xiaomin, the former chairman of Huarong. He served as a key accomplice in many of Lai's illegal activities, media reports said.

Global Times