Former Chairman of Bank of China Insurance expelled from the Party! Causing significant losses to state-owned assets and encroaching on the interests of grassroots employees

On April 3, the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission released a notice. Zhou Gonghua, the former secretary of the Party committee and chairman of BOC Insurance Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “BOC Insurance”), has been expelled from the Party. On May 23 last year, Zhou Gonghua was publicly announced as having been “taken down,” which was already two and a half years after he stepped down; and from the time he was investigated to the issuance of the disciplinary decision, it took about 11 months.

According to the investigation, Zhou Gonghua “lost Party spirit and principles, betrayed the original mission, resisted organizational review, and participated in feudal superstition activities.” The notice’s wording is harsh and packed with terms. Of particular note are: “abuse of power and wanton acts, irregularly interfering in and meddling with loan/credit approval matters, causing major losses to state-owned assets” and “greed swelling unchecked, relying on lending to eat from lending; using the convenience of his position and the conveniences formed by his authority or status to seek benefits for others in areas such as credit/loan approval, and illegally accepting huge amounts of money and property.”

The notice ultimately characterized it as a “typical case of the fusion of corruption and degradation of official conduct, and of profiting from finance by eating finance,” and pointed out that “after the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, he did not rein himself in and did not stop.” Pursuant to relevant regulations, following a study by the Party committee of the Bank of China, it was decided to impose on Zhou Gonghua the disciplinary punishment of expulsion from the Party; in accordance with regulations, his retirement benefits would be revoked, any illegal gains related to violations would be confiscated, and any issues suspected of a crime would be transferred to the judicial procuratorial organs for review and prosecution according to law.

From credit/loan approval to the misappropriation of the interests of frontline employees

The resume shows that Zhou Gonghua, born in 1962, joined the Bank of China in 1995. He served for a long time along the credit and asset preservation lines. He previously served as deputy director and vice president of the Sichuan branch of the Bank of China, and vice president of the Beijing branch. Since July 2016, he has been in charge of BOC Insurance as chairman, a position he held for six years, and he retired upon reaching the statutory age in December 2022.

What is special about the case of Zhou Gonghua is that: his misconduct and irregularities involved a large number of matters in banking business areas such as credit/loan approval, while he himself had worked for a long time in the banking system on credit-related work, and later was transferred to the position of chairman of an insurance company. In bank-affiliated insurance companies, it is not uncommon for executives to be transferred from the credit lines of the parent bank. Such an arrangement can indeed bring banking channels and customer resources, but it may also bring into the insurance system those “trial-and-approval” practices that have gone off track in the banking industry’s credit culture.

There is also another point: the official notice clearly states that Zhou Gonghua “disregarded the rights and interests of the people and encroached on the interests of frontline employees.” This wording is quite rare among financial executives who were investigated and disciplined in recent years. Looking at insurance-company executives investigated and handled in recent years, the notices generally focus on economic crimes and crimes related to duty. To list “encroaching on the interests of frontline employees” separately is truly unusual.

The notice shows that he had the expenses that should have been paid by himself paid by others, and illegally occupied turnover housing. These “micro” corrupt practices have been reported from time to time at the grassroots level, but they are often internally absorbed. The word “encroachment” in the announcement is enough to show the directness and harm of his actions.

值得关注的是，在逐步走出周功华案阴霾的同时，中银保险交出了一份平稳的业绩答卷。据中国银行年报，截至2025年末，中银保险资产总额12.74B元，较上年末的12.26B元增长3.9%；净资产5.34B元，与上年末的5.34B元基本持平。经营层面，2025年全年实现保险服务收入6.45B元，同比增长4.0%；净利润286M元，同比增长10.0%。

However, growth in performance cannot conceal concerns about governance. For BOC Insurance, using the case as a lesson, promoting rectification through the case, and promoting governance through the case may be the most worth watching “performance indicators” in the future.

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