China pledges to protect private businesses from illegal investigations, economic crime

After the country’s president met tech bosses, top prosecutors say they will ‘resolutely’ fight economic crime, defamation amid sluggish domestic economic recovery

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Private business leaders in China have been offered renewed efforts against illegal investigations in a bid to help shore up business sentiment. Photo: AP

Published: 7:06pm, 18 Feb 2025Updated: 7:50pm, 18 Feb 2025

China’s top prosecutors have promised to give more legal protection to the country’s private businesses, pledging on Tuesday to crack down on illegal investigations targeting the sector.

The promise on Tuesday came a day after Chinese President Xi Jinping met high-profile entrepreneurs in a push to offer assurances as the country faces increasing economic headwinds at home and abroad.

Du Xueyi, head of economic crime prosecution under the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, said Beijing would “resolutely correct profit-driven illegal law enforcement, such as illegal case filings, involvement in economic disputes, cross-regional arrests, and unlawful sealing, confiscation or freezing of assets”.

Prosecutors would also use modern technology and improve cross-regional coordination to clean up outstanding criminal cases involving companies this year, he added.

In 2024, Chinese prosecutors cleared 2,390 criminal cases involving private companies out of the more than 2,900 they had reviewed, according to Ge Xiaoyan, China’s deputy procurator-general.

China’s private sector has struggled with low business and consumer confidence amid a sluggish domestic economic recovery, and worsening geopolitical tensions with the United States.