Mastercard extends cross-border services in China with Bank of Shanghai
Mastercard has boosted its cross-border payments service with expansion into China via a partnership with Bank of Shanghai.
Bank of Shanghai says customers are demanding more from their cross-border services
Through the Mastercard Cross Border Service platform business customers can transfer money to “any local bank in China.”
The payments firm says its service can reduce the cost of transactions and help users access real-time exchange rates.
“China is a critical market for Mastercard’s customers,” says Stephen Grainger, executive vice president for new payment platforms at Mastercard.
“Our Cross-Border Services will enable our global partners to deliver a more convenient, cost-effective and certain payment experience for people and businesses everywhere.”
In February Mastercard received in-principle approval from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) to set up a Chinese domestic bank card clearing institution.
Mastercard has aimed for Chinese payments market for some years. The firm is keen to capitalise on a market worth more than $27 trillion.
It filed for approval with PBOC under the name Mastercard NUCC Information Technology. The subsidiary is a joint venture with a Chinese clearing house.
Critical support
Founded in 1996, Bank of Shanghai is a commercial bank with yearly revenues sitting around the $14 billion mark.
The bank has an ongoing fintech partnership with Chinese commerce giant Alipay, through which international visitors to China can apply for their own prepaid card.
“Cross-border financing has always been a core offering of Bank of Shanghai and the current climate has led to a heighted customer demand for this service,” says Huang Tao, vice chairman of the bank.
“Now, more than ever, it is critical for us to support our customer’s international trade requirements.”
Related: American Express first foreign credit card player to launch in China
