On October 13, the People's Bank of China announced on its official website that it has issued an administrative licensing decision to Visa Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., approving the company to prepare for a bank card clearing institution.
Visa Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. is an enterprise legal person established in China by Visa, classified as a foreign-invested enterprise. This marks a significant step forward in Visa's journey to serve China's domestic payment market.
"The approval of this preparatory application is another important milestone in Visa's long-term commitment to serving the Chinese market," said Ryan McInerney, CEO of Visa, in an interview. He noted that China is one of the world's most advanced and dynamic digital payment markets, with a highly innovative payment ecosystem, and continues to advance high-level opening-up of its financial sector. He stated that Visa will actively carry out preparatory work under the guidance of the People's Bank of China, aiming to commence operations in China as soon as possible.
Bringing in Diverse Market Participants
"Approving Visa to prepare a bank card clearing institution in China is another landmark implementation by the central bank in steadily advancing bank card clearing market access, following the approval of UnionPay Connect and Mastercard NetsUnion, in accordance with the country's overall plan for high-level opening-up," said Wang Pengbo, chief analyst at Botong Consulting, in an analysis.
In his view, regulators have consistently adhered to the principle of treating domestic and foreign capital equally, approving one qualified applicant at a time, and gradually opening up clearing licenses. This essentially means introducing diverse market participants under controllable risk conditions, enriching the supply of domestic bank card clearing services, providing card issuers, merchants, and consumers with more diverse product and service options, and upgrading the entire payment and clearing infrastructure to better serve the real economy and cross-border trade.
"Visa is still in the preparatory phase. It will only be able to apply for a business license after completing system, risk control, and data compliance verification within one year. In the short term, it will not impact the existing market," explained Liu Gang, founder of Payment Industry Network. If formally approved in the future, the domestic clearing market landscape will gradually shift from a three-way structure of "UnionPay + American Express + Mastercard NetsUnion" to competition among four entities. However, in the short term, UnionPay remains the absolute dominant player in domestic bank card clearing.
For Visa, obtaining the preparatory license is a key step in deepening its presence in the Chinese market. "After completing preparations and passing the business opening approval, it will be able to independently operate Visa-branded RMB bank card clearing business in China, moving away from the previous dual-brand card cooperation model, and more directly connecting with domestic card issuers and acquirers to explore differentiated scenarios such as cross-border business and outbound consumption," Wang Pengbo explained.
Visa itself is also very much looking forward to this opportunity. "We look forward to actively carrying out follow-up work in accordance with the relevant regulatory provisions of the People's Bank of China, so as to commence operations in China as soon as possible," McInerney said.
Financial Sector Opening-up Continues to Deepen
It is worth noting that allowing Visa Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. to prepare a bank card clearing institution sends a positive signal of opening-up. "The bank card clearing market is an important area of financial infrastructure. Previously, relevant entities of American Express and Mastercard were approved to enter. This approval of Visa's preparation shows that China, while adhering to the principle of treating domestic and foreign capital equally, allows qualified foreign-invested enterprises to participate in domestic RMB bank card clearing business in accordance with the law, further enhancing the depth and breadth of opening-up," explained Dong Ximiao, chief economist at Zhaolian.
Over Forty Years in China: Visa Growing Together with the Chinese Market
In the interview, McInerney also emphasized that for more than forty years, Visa has not only witnessed China's economic development and the transformation of its payment industry but has also actively participated in it, contributing to China's economic and social development by connecting China with the world, supporting consumption and business development, driving payment innovation, promoting financial inclusion, and deepening international exchanges.
"China is one of the most active markets for payment innovation globally and an important part of Visa's global innovation layout," McInerney said, noting that Visa has long been combining global innovation experience with the needs of the Chinese market, continuously investing in areas such as payment security, digital wallets, transportation payments, and digital commerce. In recent years, as payment facilitation efforts have continued to advance, Visa has actively participated. For example, in 2019, Visa established its first innovation center in China in Beijing, working with financial institutions, technology companies, and industry partners to explore future-oriented payment solutions; in 2026, Visa supported Chinese cardholders in linking to Apple Pay; in the areas of inbound consumption and urban mobility, Visa has continued to promote innovative payment experiences such as "tap to pay," "tap to ride," and "buy now, refund now"; in the field of agentic payments, Visa partnered with LianLian DigiTech to complete the first real B2B agent transaction initiated by its AI agent LoopXPay.
So, if Visa obtains a license this time, what impact will it have on the domestic market? "The actual short-term impact is limited," Dong Ximiao believes. Visa still needs to complete preparations, system integration, compliance verification, and merchant bank expansion. Moreover, China's bank card clearing market is already highly competitive, and the growth of traditional bank card clearing is slowing. However, for card networks and banks, commercial banks will gain more clearing channel options, which will help optimize cooperation conditions and reduce reliance on a single provider. Competition in premium credit cards and cross-border payments will become more intense. For non-bank payment institutions and consumers, foreign visitors to China will find it more convenient to use Visa cards, and domestic consumers may also gain access to more Visa-branded RMB bank card products and cross-border benefits. In the long run, this will help promote fee rate marketization and service improvement.
Wang Pengbo also noted that the reality of the domestic market must be viewed objectively. The fundamental landscape of the domestic bank card clearing market has long been solidified, with UnionPay firmly occupying the mainstream domestic market, and UnionPay Connect and Mastercard NetsUnion having already been approved and commenced operations. Market seats are essentially filled, leaving very limited room for new entrants. Currently, various internet cross-border payment products are continuously competing for the same scenarios, and Visa will need to strive to find differentiated survival space in cross-border niche scenarios.
"Visa looks forward to further bringing its world-leading innovation capabilities, security guarantees, and operational experience to the Chinese market, better serving Chinese consumers and corporate clients, and contributing to the continued innovation and development of China's payment industry," McInerney said. After commencing domestic operations, Visa will have the opportunity to support domestic Chinese clients in issuing Visa-branded payment products accepted within China, further promoting the development of China's digital payments.