China's 5th-ranked official Cai Qi to oversee 9300 trillion digital economy

Chai Qi, ranked 5th in the Chinese Communist Party hierarchy and serving as Secretary of the Central Secretariat and Director of the General Office of the Central Committee (a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau), has been appointed as the supervisor of the digital economy worth 50 trillion yuan (approximately 9300 trillion won). It is evaluated that Secretary Chai, who has gained the trust of Chinese President Xi Jinping, has been delegated significant authority by President Xi.

On the 29th, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, citing sources, that President Xi appointed Secretary Chai as the head of the Party Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission (CAC). Although not officially announced, it is explained that Secretary Chai has been handling related duties since the first half of last year. Secretary Chai is known to have experience using social networking services (SNS) while working in Zhejiang Province in the 2000s, and has about 10 million followers on Weibo.

SCMP noted, "The new internet commander, Secretary Chai, will oversee China's digital economy, which is worth more than 50 trillion yuan," emphasizing that he is a key figure involved in party ideology and personnel matters in his role as Director of the General Office of the Central Committee.

Deng Yuwen, former editor-in-chief of the Communist Party's official newspaper, said, "This move (personnel appointment) suggests that President Xi continues to delegate authority to his most trusted aides and is trying to form a new power structure," adding, "He is responsible for military and major foreign security issues, and Premier Li Qiang, in charge of the economy, was appointed last November as Director of the newly established Central Financial Commission."

A political scientist from Tsinghua University told SCMP, "Secretary Chai being assigned cyber duties shows that he has earned 'firm trust' from President Xi," while a researcher who requested anonymity explained, "The president views areas such as cybersecurity, online propaganda, and the digital economy as 'matters of life and death' for the party."

Secretary Chai first became connected with President Xi in Fujian Province, where Xi spent nearly 20 years in the 1980s. They later reunited in Zhejiang Province, and Chai is classified as a close aide who has supported President Xi for over 10 years. In 2014, he advanced to the central government from his position as Executive Vice Governor of Zhejiang Province and was appointed Deputy Director of the General Office of the Central National Security Commission. In 2017, he was appointed Party Secretary of Beijing and a member of the Political Bureau.