A 32-year-old former bank manager has been sentenced to four years' imprisonment and ordered to make restitution of approximately HK$3.7 million after accepting over US$470,000 in cryptocurrency bribes to falsely authenticate fabricated letters of credit worth more than US$1.6 billion.
The defendant, Lam Chun-yin, formerly a customer relationship manager at China Construction Bank (Asia) Corporation Limited, previously pleaded guilty in the District Court to one count of conspiracy for an agent to accept advantages, prosecuted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). An additional charge of conspiracy to use false instruments was left on the court file and not proceeded with.
Delivering the sentence at the District Court, Judge Ernest Lin Kam-hung underscored the grave nature of the offense, stating that deterrent sentences remain necessary even for first-time offenders. The judge stressed that judicial sentencing must consider not only actual monetary loss but also broader societal impact.
Highlighting that banking and insurance form the lifeblood and economic cornerstone of Hong Kong, the judge noted that the scheme involved international dimensions that severely undermined the city's reputation as a global financial hub and eroded investor confidence.
Categorizing the misconduct as among the most severe of its kind, the court imposed a four-year prison term and ordered the defendant to repay approximately HK$3.7 million to the bank.
An ICAC spokesperson noted that while corrupt syndicates increasingly attempt to conceal illicit payments through cryptocurrency channels to evade detection, the anti-graft agency remains fully committed to uncovering such schemes. The commission has also obtained court warrants for the arrest of other individuals involved in the case.
At the time of the offense, Lam was assigned to retail banking services for individual clients and had no authorization to handle commercial credit facilities or issue letters of credit.
During the period, overseas financial technology firm Vesttoo Limited operated a digital platform facilitating insurance-linked investment transactions, which required participating investors to provide bank-issued standby letters of credit as collateral.
After Yu Po Holdings Limited became an investor on the platform in early 2022, a syndicate arranged for Lam to pose as the designated CCB contact person responsible for issuing these guarantees.
In exchange for more than US$470,000 in Tether (USDT), Lam conspired with a department head at Vesttoo and associates to falsely verify multiple counterfeit standby letters of credit and two forged pledge letters purportedly issued by Yu Po and endorsed by CCB, involving aggregate sums exceeding US$1.6 billion.
The fraudulent operation came to light following an internal investigation by CCB (Asia), which confirmed that neither the bank nor any of its affiliated entities had ever authorized or issued the financial instruments in question.
