China's elite hiding billions overseas, US report says

Relatives of at least five current and former members of China's top leadership are shareholders in many offshore companies, allowing them to conceal their assets, according to a report from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

While being a shareholder in an offshore company doesn't constitute a crime or indicate wrongdoing, the report from the US-based group was released at a crucial moment. For the last year, President Xi Jinping's administration has said it would not tolerate graft and has banned public officials from showy displays of wealth.

The journalists' report hints at the great wealth amassed by some relatives of China's leaders as the public grows increasingly critical of the nation's inequality.

The ICIJ said in its report that it had collected evidence that many Chinese companies and individuals "have used offshore entities to engage in illicit or illegal behaviour".

The report listed a few examples, including a former railway official who pleaded guilty to criminal charges after he funnelled US$2.8 billion into offshore accounts.

China's once richest man, Huang Guangyu, along with his wife Du Juan set up a network of at least 31 British Virgin Island companies from 2001 to 2008, the ICIJ said. At that time they were building the largest consumer-electronics retail chain in the country, GOME. In 2010, Huang was sentenced to 14 years in prison following his conviction for bribery, insider trading and illegal foreign-exchange deals.