BEIJING, March 13, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - China has launched an investigation into another former top banker for suspected corruption, state media reported Wednesday, as President Xi Jinping's flagship anti-graft drive rages through the financial sector.

Li Jiping, the onetime vice-chief of the state-owned China Development Bank (CDB), is "suspected of serious violations of discipline and law", state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Xi has waged a sweeping campaign against deep-rooted official corruption since coming to power a decade ago.

Proponents say the drive promotes clean governance, but critics argue it also serves as a way for Xi to purge political rivals.

Recently, the ruling Communist Party's graft-busters have increasingly trained their sights on the financial and banking sectors.

Last month, the former president of China Merchants Bank, Tian Huiyu, was handed a suspended death sentence for accepting huge bribes.

The CDB has been hit particularly hard, with former vice president Zhou Qingyu arrested in December for allegedly taking bribes.

The same crime landed another top executive at the bank, He Xingxiang, 20 years behind bars in January.