Yao Qian, the former head of the digital currency wing of the People’s Bank of China, has been found guilty of taking a bribe of 2,000 ETH. In his office, a hardware wallet was discovered.

Yao Qian is guilty of crypto bribery. The former director (56 years old) was instrumental in the digital yuan of China. His criminal acts were exposed by the state television in a documentary broadcast on January 11.

Federal officials discovered 10 million yuan in shell company accounts. Qian bought a Beijing mansion worth 20 million yuan registered in the name of a relative. The investigators tracked 12 million yuan to firms he helped with his government job.

Qian headed the digital currency institute of the People’s Bank of China and subsequently served in the Securities and Exchange Commission of China. His positions accorded him great power in the blockchain industry in the country.

The Ethereum Connection: Digital Yuan Architect’s Secret Crypto Dealings

In 2018, Qian assisted a blockchain entrepreneur with the launch of a project. Investors brought 20,000 ETH into the venture. He was paid 2,000 ETH, which would be approximately 37 million dollars today.  

Cctv reported that Qian had alluded to the possibility of Ethereum being integrated with the digital yuan of China. His words in 2021 read as pure irony today because the technology to support his corrupt actions was the same.  

Qian made the confession when he was interrogated, claiming that he knew this was a secret. He thought that it would be hard to get detected, but several layers of transactions actually generated more evidence. His intricate plan ultimately brought to light his offenses.

The paradox was explained by Shi Changping of the Shanwei Disciplinary Inspection Commission. With the addition of layers, the number of witnesses increased; each transaction had digital footprints, and blockchain technology made it impossible to hide them.

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Hardware Wallet Discovery Seals Former Official’s Fate

Cai Kuning informed investigators about the search strategy. Teams focused on hardware wallets and recovery phrase notes. They found the device of Qian in his office dresser, which gave tangible evidence.

When searching, two things must be found, Kuning said. The first important thing is hardware wallets; the second essential aspect is recovery word notes.

In 2021, Qian converted some of his cryptocurrency to yuan. Jiang Guoqing was a facilitator of deals, and he was featured in the anti-corruption documentary. He affirmed that Qian was influential in the industry.

The impact of Yao Qian was great indeed, said Guoqing. He had lots of leverage from his central bank position. The position of the government permitted biases in favor of blockchain projects.

China prohibited the use of cryptocurrencies even though it developed the digital yuan. Law enforcement proved to have advanced knowledge of crypto-activities, and their training facilitated the conclusion of prominent cases.

China is still proceeding with the e-CNY pilot program. The digital yuan enters high-tech stages of testing. The CBDC Tracker ascertains that China is the world leader in the development of digital currency. This belief underscores the difficulty in moving to state-sponsored currencies.

The post China’s Digital Yuan Architect Convicted in $37M Crypto Bribery Scandal appeared first on Live Bitcoin News.

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ January 17, 2026 11:59 pm