China Bank Account Freeze Controversy: Authorities Reveal Latest Reimbursement Plan, Three Officials Now Under Investigation

In a move seen as an attempt to pacify protesting bank clients, Chinese authorities in Henan province announced their latest repayment plan which sees customers with deposits ranging between $14,827 and $22,240 qualify for reimbursement. In addition, authorities said two unnamed officials from the province are being investigated for allegedly violating the law.

Reimbursements Set to Commence in August

Authorities in China’s Henan province have reportedly announced plans for another round of repayments to clients of rural banks whose bank accounts have been frozen since April. The repayments program is set to start on August 1 and according to an arrangement put forward by authorities, only clients with deposits that range between 100,000 yuan ($14,827) and 150,000 yuan ($22,240) qualify to receive a reimbursement.

According to a Reuters report, authorities in the province are now moving to pacify the restive bank clients who have been protesting against the three rural banks’ decision to freeze their funds. Before the latest announcement, some officials in the province had reportedly used the country’s Covid-19 regulations to block planned protests.

However, as reported by Bitcoin.com News, angry bank clients were later able to picket outside the central bank’s offices in Henan. Following reports of the rare protests, some social media users began circulating videos of military tanks seemingly moving to protect the central bank’s offices from protestors. However, other users insisted the tanks were in fact on a parade in Shandong province, more than 440 kilometers away.

Three Officials Under Investigation

While Chinese authorities have not directly commented on the protests, a statement reportedly issued by the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) suggested that two officials, one from its Henan province office and another from a sub-office, were under investigation for violating the law.

In addition, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in Henan also announced that it is now investigating an official charged with overseeing financial stability at the central bank’s office in the provincial capital, Zhengzhou. The unnamed official faced charges of serious disciplinary violation, the report said.