Card Providers Target China

Card providers target China

In China credit cards (and even debit cards) are a relatively new phenomenon as traditionally, people choose to pay in cash; 66% agree with the statement “I like to pay cash for all purchases”.
Chinese people are traditionally very cautious about being in debt and the emphasis is on “saving” rather than spending. However three years ago 73% agreed with the same statement. As the Chinese get richer, they seem more comfortable with taking on debt.

Use of credit cards is proportionally tiny in China and use of debit cards is much higher at 40%, but both are expected to grow in future years.

The majority of card owners use a Chinese local debit/credit card. However, there is a niche of very wealthy businessmen and higher income Chinese who are becoming more attractive to companies like Visa and American Express. The volume of advertising from Western credit card companies would seem to back this up.

In terms of future potential, statistics published by the People’s Bank of China in 2001 show that the number of cards issued by the banks has increased by 64% each year. The total sum of transactions has increased by 76% per year, and the number of retailers who accept the cards has grown by 51% per year.