Legal analysis: whether private lending should be punished by law depends on whether the borrower borrows money through legal private lending. The statutory interest of private lending cannot exceed 4 times that of banks in the same period. If the loan interest exceeds this provision, it is not within the scope of legal protection. In this case, private lending is illegal and will not play a role. If the interest is within the prescribed range, private lending will not be punished by law.

Legal basis: Civil Code of People's Republic of China (PRC).

Article 680 usury is prohibited and the loan interest rate shall not violate the relevant provisions of the state. If there is no agreement on the payment of interest in the loan contract, it shall be deemed that there is no interest. If the loan contract does not specify the payment method of interest, and the parties cannot reach a supplementary agreement, the interest shall be determined according to the local or the parties' trading methods, trading habits, market interest rates and other factors; Loans between natural persons are regarded as interest-free.

Article 675 The borrower shall repay the loan within the agreed time limit. If the term of the loan is not agreed or clearly agreed, and cannot be determined according to the provisions of Article 510 of this Law, the borrower may return it at any time; The lender may urge the borrower to return it within a reasonable period of time.

Article 676 If the borrower fails to repay the loan within the agreed time limit, it shall pay the overdue interest in accordance with the agreement or the relevant provisions of the state.