Attack On Bank Of China For Money Laundering Screams Infighting In Beijing

On Wednesday morning, China Central Television, the state broadcaster, accused Bank of China of “blatantly offering money laundering services.”

CCTV footage, some of it recorded by an undercover reporter, detailed how a bank employee in Guangdong province coached the journalist on how to transfer large sums offshore in an apparent violation of China’s capital control rules.  Those regulations allow individuals to send no more than the equivalent of $50,000 a year.

The CCTV report alleged that the bank, one of China’s “Big Four,” fabricated information through its Youhuitong—“preferential money transfer”—platform.  BOC, as the bank is sometimes called, also joined forces with immigration businesses to hide the source of money and send it outside the country.  “Regardless of where and how you get your money, we can help you get it out,” CCTV quoted a bank employee.

One branch in Guangdong had already transferred six billion yuan this year, according to CCTV, and several branches in Beijing also provided the same service.

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