What’s new: China’s top livestreamer Huang Wei, nicknamed “Weiya” online, has been fined a record 1.34 billion yuan ($210 million) for income tax evasion, following the first pair of such penalties last month in the flourishing but underregulated industry.
The tax authorities in the eastern city of Hangzhou found Huang Wei evaded $110 million of personal taxes through underreporting and illegally classing personal income as business income, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. The record amount includes personal taxes Huang evaded, and administrative and overdue fines.
The background: The punishment came a month after the Hangzhou tax authorities slapped a combined 93.2 million yuan of fines on two other influential livestreamers for income tax evasion in November, the first of its kind in the sector.
Zhu Chenhui, who goes by the screen name “Xueli Cherie,” and Lin Shanshan, known as “Lin Shanshan Sunny,” also illegally reported personal income as business income, evading more than $6.8 million of personal taxes.
Contact reporter Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com)
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