Former chairman of China's state-owned semiconductor company sentenced to death for corruption
It has been revealed that Zhao Weiguo, the former chairman of the Chinese semiconductor manufacturer Tsinghua Unigroup, has been given a death sentence with a two-year suspension for corruption. In such cases, the sentence is usually commuted to life imprisonment if no new crimes are committed during the suspension period, so it has been reported that he has been given a de facto life sentence.
Former Chinese Chip Boss Zhao Weiguo Gets Suspended Death Sentence in Corruption Case - WSJ
Former chairman of China's chipmaking champion gets suspended death sentence in corruption and embezzlement case | Tom's Hardware
https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/semiconductors/former-chairman-of-chinas-chipmaking-champion-gets-suspended-death-sentence-in-corruption-and-embezzlement-case
Chinese prosecutors allege that Zhao abused his power to provide benefits to his relatives and friends, improperly acquired 470 million yuan (US$86 million) worth of state assets, and engaged in improper transactions that caused losses to companies, resulting in economic losses to the state of more than 890 million yuan (US$175 million).
China's state-run television station, China Central Television, reported on May 14, 2025 that the Intermediate People's Court in Jilin Province had sentenced Zhao, who had been on trial in September 2023 for more than 19 months at the time of writing, to 'death sentence, but with a two-year suspension of execution.'
In its ruling, the court criticized Zhao's corruption as 'extremely large in amount, causing particularly serious damage to national interests.' According to reports, Zhao was given a certain degree of leniency after he admitted his guilt, showed remorse, and offered to voluntarily return the illegally obtained benefits.
Zhao himself has not been available to comment, and Tsinghua Unigroup did not respond to media requests for comment.
Tsinghua Unigroup was once praised as one of China's leading semiconductor companies, with numerous subsidiaries involved in semiconductors for PCs and mobile devices, as well as cloud computing infrastructure.
Zhao, who joined Tsinghua Unigroup in the 1990s, is said to have developed the company into a leading semiconductor company through an aggressive acquisition strategy as part of a government-led semiconductor push to catch up with Western countries.
But as Tsinghua Unigroup expanded under Zhao's leadership, it relied heavily on government support, defaulting on huge debts in 2020 and filing for bankruptcy in July 2021.
Even after the company's reckless business expansion collapsed, Zhao continued to hold a grip on management, but stepped down as chairman in February 2022. In July of the same year, Chinese media Caixin reported that Zhao had been detained by authorities and was unable to be contacted.
Meanwhile, Tsinghua Unigroup is being restructured by a consortium led by two state-owned semiconductor venture capital firms taking over management, and in March 2023, its subsidiary, Yangtze Memory (YMTC), developed quad-level cell (QLC) NAND memory with durability comparable to triple-level cell (TLC) NAND memory, claiming to have made a breakthrough in the flash memory field.
The Wall Street Journal said of the case, 'The case against Mr. Zhao, which first came to light in early 2023, was one in a series of corruption investigations that led to the arrests of key figures in China's semiconductor industry at the time after aggressive investments that either failed or stalled.'
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