Nonbank payment firms to be better regulated

The State Council, China's Cabinet, rolled out regulations on Friday to better exercise whole-process and full-cycle supervision toward the management of nonbank payment institutions.

Attendees at the State Council executive meeting, chaired by Premier Li Qiang, noted that the growth of the nonbank payment industry plays an important role in catalyzing transaction activities and fostering a thriving market, and is conducive to the development of the real economy and improvement of people's livelihoods.

The total amount of online payments made by nonbank payment entities climbed from 6.2 trillion yuan ($868 billion) to 337.9 trillion yuan between 2012 and 2022, while the number of such transactions increased from 9.8 billion to over 1 trillion, according to the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank.

Payment institutions should be guided to firmly adhere to the principle that their businesses are there to better serve the people, according to the meeting.

Noting that the nonbank payment businesses should stick to smaller transaction amounts and ensure convenient services for people, attendees called for dedicated efforts to further meet the payment and settlement needs of users.

The relevant government departments should strengthen supervision every step of the way and place tighter controls on the market access of nonbank payment institutions, in order to guard against risks such as funds misappropriation and data leakage, according to the meeting.

Attendees emphasized that more rigorous steps should be taken to prevent illegal fundraising, telecommunication network frauds and other illegal and criminal activities under the guise of such payment platforms, in order to promote benign competition and healthy development of the industry.

At the end of 2022, the number of nonbank payment institutions in the country was 201, with a total of 1,535 branches and 44,500 employees, data from the Payment & Clearing Association of China showed in May.

Friday's meeting also decided to promote continuous improvement of air quality, as part of the country's efforts to win the critical battle of pollution prevention and control.

According to the meeting, it is imperative to integrate high-standard protection with high-quality development, accelerate transformation in sectors such as energy and transportation, and build a green, low-carbon and circular economic system, in order to enhance the potential and sustainability of development.