Cyberport Executive Arrested for Bribery, HK$20M Subsidy Fraud Alleged

Cyberport Executive Charged in HK$20 Million Fraud Scheme

Hong Kong: The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has charged six individuals, including a former executive director at Cyberport, in connection with a scheme involving alleged bribery and fraudulent subsidy applications totaling approximately HK$20 million.

The former executive director, identified as Su Ya-li, is accused of accepting benefits such as flight tickets, luxury handbags, and mobile phones from a service provider. In return, she allegedly favored the provider’s subsidy applications and halted investigations into complaints against them.

The case involves the government’s Digital Transformation Support Pilot Scheme, which aims to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) adopt digital solutions. Cyberport served as the secretariat for this program.

Allegations of Bribery and Favoritism

According to the ICAC, Su Ya-li, who was fully responsible for the secretariat’s operations from October 2023 to January 2026, is charged with one count of a public servant accepting advantages, a violation of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

The alleged benefits were provided by Lin Yuan-li, head of the service provider Find Solution Ai Limited. The ICAC stated that Su Ya-li received multiple flight tickets for trips to Thailand and Japan, several designer handbags, and a smartphone. It is alleged that she subsequently ceased investigating complaints against Find Solution and expedited the processing of applications involving the company.

The bribery charges cover the period from October 27, 2023, to December 14, 2025, with the listed gifts including more than one flight ticket, a handbag, two tote bags, a coin purse, and a mobile phone.

Widespread Fraudulent Applications

In parallel, five other individuals, including Lin Yuan-li, are accused of conspiracy to defraud. Prosecutors allege that they falsely claimed to Cyberport that multiple eligible companies had applied for subsidies, hired Find Solution, and paid their own half of the costs. This was allegedly done to induce Cyberport to approve applications and disburse the government’s share as subsidies to the company.

The ICAC has identified at least 400 suspected fraudulent applications, involving approximately HK$20 million in subsidies. The period for the conspiracy to defraud charge spans from October 27, 2023, to January 12, 2026. The charge sheet also names an individual not among the six defendants as a co-conspirator.

An earlier ICAC operation, codenamed “Thunderbolt,” led to the arrest of nine individuals. The implicated service provider had submitted over 1,000 applications seeking about HK$50 million in subsidies, with HK$31 million not disbursed after the ICAC’s intervention. The group allegedly hired salespeople to solicit SMEs, promising free application assistance and inflating the cost of digital solutions. Six of the nine arrested individuals have now been charged.

Defendants and Legal Proceedings

The defendants are divided into two groups. The bribery and corruption line involves 59-year-old Su Ya-li and 39-year-old Lin Yuan-li, who faces a charge of offering advantages to a public servant, violating the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance.

The fraud line includes five individuals charged with conspiracy to defraud: Lin Yuan-li; her 35-year-old brother and Find Solution company secretary, Lin Kin-ho; and three salespeople: Li Yi-lin (40) from Hong Kong Vision Enterprise, and Chan Kai-kin (31) and Tsang Wai-ping (52), both from Xunda Fang. Su Ya-li is the only former Cyberport employee among the six defendants.

The case is being heard at the Eastern Magistrates’ Courts before Magistrate Wang Ching-yu. Bail has been set at HK$100,000 for Su Ya-li and the Lin siblings, and HK$20,000 for the three salespeople. They are prohibited from leaving Hong Kong and from contacting prosecution witnesses.

The prosecution has requested an additional 12 weeks for further investigation, with the next court date scheduled for January 4, 2027. The prosecution currently has 49 witnesses, including 14 ICAC officers, 12 recorded caution interviews totaling approximately 10 hours and 45 minutes, and about 3,000 pages of documentary evidence.

Cyberport’s Role and Web3 Initiatives

Cyberport, located in the Southern District of Hong Kong Island, is the government’s official digital technology hub. In its February 2023 budget address, the Financial Secretary announced the establishment of a Web3 hub at Cyberport and allocated HK$50 million to accelerate the development of the Web3 ecosystem. Since then, it has become a key platform for the government’s promotion of Web3 technologies.

A document submitted to the Legislative Council’s Information Technology and Broadcasting Services Panel on October 12 indicated that the Cyberport community comprises over 2,400 information and communications technology companies, with approximately 330 of them focused on blockchain, representing about 14% of the total and ranking fourth among six major categories.

Since its inception in 2023, the Web3 hub has attracted companies founded by individuals from Hong Kong, mainland China, and 19 overseas countries and regions. This includes one listed company, two unicorns, and five licensed virtual asset trading platforms. Cyberport highlighted HashKey, HKVAX, and HKbitEX as part of its community in June 2025.

Beyond providing space, Cyberport has also utilized government funding for blockchain initiatives. The HK$50 million fund, fully utilized by March 2026, supported over 50 application projects through two proof-of-concept and pilot subsidy programs. These projects covered areas such as tokenization of real assets, payments, cybersecurity, and decentralized digital identity, with related educational and promotional activities reaching nearly 450,000 participants.

The current case involves a separate government allocation of HK$500 million in 2023 for Cyberport’s Digital Transformation Support Pilot Scheme, which covers the catering, retail, tourism, and personal services sectors. This scheme received over 14,000 applications, with nearly 8,800 approved. The legislative document detailing these achievements made no mention of the ICAC investigation. There is currently no official information suggesting any issues with the blockchain subsidy program.

In January, the ICAC stated that its investigation did not uncover involvement from other Cyberport staff. A Cyberport spokesperson responded at the time that, apart from the former employee who has since resigned, all other staff members handled applications diligently. The guilt or innocence of the six individuals will be determined by the court.