On December 20, 2021, the State Tax Bureau of China announced that Viya would be fined $ 210 million(¥1.34 billion) for tax evasion. This is the highest fine levied on an individual in the country's history. Later on the same day, all of her online accounts, as her business platforms, were closed down in accordance with the authorities' stipulations.
The 36-year-old Viya, China's top livestream seller, has broken many sales records since her first appearance, in 2016, on Taobao Live (an Alibaba-owned live-streaming channel). According to Alibaba Group, Viya’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) in the presales day for Double 11, the most extensive online shopping festival in China, reached $ 134 million (¥ 8.53 billion), hitting the number two spot for GMV last year. In 2020, she was selected as Fortune China Most Influential Businesswoman, and Forbes China Up-and-Coming Businesswoman in 2021.
