Four foreign banks set for debit card debut in China

According to media reports, China's banking regulator has revealed that it expects HSBC, Citigroup, and two other foreign banks to begin issuing local currency debit cards to Chinese consumers in the near future.

The Shanghai branch of the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CRBC) has reportedly received applications for debit card issuance from Citigroup and Bank of East Asia. In addition to this, Reuters reported that HSBC and Standard Chartered are also expected to apply in the near future, citing Wang Huaqing, assistant to the chairman of the CBRC, as its source. Mr Wang also reportedly said that, due to current Chinese banking regulations, foreign banks are limited to only issuing debit cards. However, no timeframe has been given for when the debit cards will make their debut. According to Reuters, the four finance firms were the first foreign banks to obtain approval for local incorporation in the country and all four companies launched business operations in China in April 2007. Under Chinese regulation, foreign banks that are not incorporated domestically are prohibited from issuing any type of bank cards independently. However, banks with domestically incorporated Chinese units must still seek approval from regulators for any card issuance.