ByteDance cracks down on corruption, bribery amid 125 cases reported in first half of 2024

Social media giant ByteDance has reported 125 internal misconduct cases on the mainland, including bribery and misappropriation of company property, during the first half of this year, which resulted in either the dismissal or arrest of the offending employees.

About 88 ByteDance employees were sacked, while 17 others were taken into custody by public security authorities for the reported offences, according to a statement on Monday by the company’s Douyin business unit, which oversees TikTok’s domestic sibling Douyin, news aggregator Jinri Toutiao and Xigua Video.

Beijing-based ByteDance “has always maintained a ‘zero-tolerance’ attitude towards corruption and bribery”, the company said. “If any violation of laws and regulations or the code of conduct for employees is found, the employees involved will be dismissed and never be employed once the case is confirmed.”

The hardline stance by the world’s largest unicorn shows the lengths it is taking to retain and attract talent, as the company boosts productivity and continues to restructure its operations this year.

In March, ByteDance pledged to raise annual bonuses for high-performing employees even as it deals with the latest crisis facing its flagship platform TikTok in the United States.