Leadercf.com

About Leadercf.com

Guangzhou Lide Fortune Information Technology Co., Ltd., which operated the online platform Leadercf.com, was a peer-to-peer (P2P) lending company established in Guangzhou, China. The company was officially registered on June 19, 2013. Initially founded by Hong Kaibin, Ni Xiaohui, and Hong Jizhun, the firm aimed to connect borrowers with investors, positioning itself as a financial intermediary. Hong Kaibin, who served as the original CEO, brought seven years of experience from the credit card risk management sector at China Merchants Bank, while Ni Xiaohui had a background in internet operations from his time at Pacific Network and Yiche.com.

The business was designed to operate as a P2P network lending information intermediary, theoretically facilitating loans between parties and earning a service fee upon successful transactions. It targeted small and micro-enterprises facing financing challenges, with a focus on supply chain finance, particularly in sectors like the red wine trade. However, the company's operations deviated significantly from its intended model. In what became a high-profile case, Leadercf was found to be engaged in fraudulent activities. The platform fabricated borrowers by purchasing thousands of shell companies and created fictitious loan applications to attract investor funds. To enhance the scheme's credibility, the company also set up four counterfeit担保 companies, all secretly controlled by the platform's eventual boss, to underwrite these fraudulent loans.

In July 2018, the platform collapsed after its chairman, Zheng Yansen, disappeared, leading to the company's management reporting the case to the police. It was later revealed that Zheng Yansen was a public figurehead, while the operation was actually masterminded by Lin Jiepeng. An investigation by the Guangzhou Tianhe Public Security Bureau led to the company being charged with fundraising fraud. In December 2020, the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court delivered its verdict, sentencing the mastermind, Lin Jiepeng, to life in prison, while chairman Zheng Yansen received a 15-year sentence. The case was a prominent example in the nationwide crackdown on illicit P2P lending platforms in China.