BEIJING, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- China's top banking regulator has fined a Chengdu branch of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPA) 462 million yuan (about 72.19 million U.S. dollars) for offering huge credit to bogus firms, as part of the country's latest crackdown on financial irregularities.

The head of the Chengdu branch will be banned from working in the banking sector for life, according to the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC).

The SPDB branch was found to have offered credit worth 77.5 billion yuan to 1,493 bogus firms via illegal means in a bid to cover bad loans.

The organized malpractice reveals poor inner regulation, low sense of compliance and over-the-top focus on business expansion, according to the CBRC.

Local banking regulatory officials and SPDB senior management were also punished for their negligence of duty.

Last month, China Guangfa Bank was fined 722 million yuan for offering illegal guarantees for defaulted corporate bonds.

Risk control will be strengthened in interbank activities, financial products and off-balance sheet business, while violations in corporate governance, property loans, disposal of non-performing assets, and other key areas will also face stricter punishment, the CBRC announced last week.