China’s central bank has fined the online payment arm of ride-hailing giant Didi Global RMB 4.3 million ($633,241) for violating money laundering regulations and other rules, according to a Friday notice published by the People’s Bank of China’s (PBOC’s) operation office in Beijing, reports Caixin.
The PBOC listed 11 violations in the notice, including failing to confirm the identity of its customers. It also penalized two of the payment unit’s former executives. The pair had been responsible for the violations at the time.
Chinese tech giants such as Tencent Holdings, Alibaba Group Holding and Didi have all launched online payment businesses and other financial services over the past decade. However, their freewheeling expansions eventually ran into a regulatory crackdown on the fintech industry that began in 2020 over issues including leverage, data security and money laundering.