Issuing: Citigroup Will Be Proposing Cards in China
- The US-based Citigroup has been granted required permissions from the China Banking Regulatory Commission to issue retail and commercial cards in China starting 2012.
- This announcement results from long-lasting discussions with developments in the Chinese market in view. To these same ends, in 2003, the player associated with the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB) on cobranded cards: the Joint Venture has not been questioned by these new evolutions.
- This approval follows preliminary regulatory approval in January 2012 for Citi to establish a joint-venture securities firm in China, together with Orient Securities Company Ltd. The entity, Citi Orient Securities Co Ltd (investment bank) will be based in Shanghai.
- Usually very closed, the coveted Chinese market is slowly opening to foreign players as big US players are working to conquer it.
- American Express for instance recently announced an agreement with the Chinese PSP Lianlian to launch its mobile wallet. There again, China is seen as a strong strategic region–as by the network’s previous partnerships with ICBC, CMB and Bank of China on cobranding and card acceptance (see January 2012 Insight).