A Beijing court on Tuesday sentenced the architect of the $9 billion Ezubao online financial scam to life imprisonment, and handed down jail time to 26 others, marking the close to one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in modern Chinese history. The ruling comes at a time when the government is stepping up efforts to crack down on risky and illicit behaviour in the country’s financial sector, including the unruly peer-to-peer industry that continues to attract high volumes. Beijing First Intermediate People’s Court sentenced Ding Ning - chairman of Anhui Yucheng Holdings Group that launched Ezubao in 2014 - to life in ... (full story)