Tuesday 13 October 2026
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Visa wins China approval to operate bank card clearing business

Licence arrives ahead of expected Trump-Xi meeting at APEC summit in Shenzhen

By LineZotpaper
Published
Read Time2 min
US payments giant Visa has received approval from the People's Bank of China to set up a bank card clearing business, a significant step into a market Beijing has long kept closed to foreign card networks. The company announced the decision on Tuesday, weeks before Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are expected to meet again at the APEC summit in Shenzhen.

Visa described the approval as "an important milestone toward the company serving China's domestic payments market."

CEO Ryan McInerney said the company had been "an active contributor to China's dynamic payments landscape" for more than 40 years and looked forward to taking the necessary steps under PBOC regulations to begin operating domestically.

Mainland China has kept a tight grip on its financial sector, favouring domestic players and restricting cross-border capital flows. Visa first applied with the PBOC in May 2020, after years of working with Chinese banks on dual-branded cards, under which UnionPay processes transactions domestically and Visa handles overseas payments.

The timing has drawn attention. George Chen, partner and chair of digital practice at The Asia Group, said Beijing appeared to be demonstrating tangible progress for American businesses before Trump's next visit to China. "Beijing chose to approve Visa's license just ahead of the APEC Leaders' Meeting in Shenzhen next month, where Xi and Trump are expected to meet again," he said.

Trump told Fox News after his Beijing trip in May that he had raised Visa's request to gain China market access. McInerney joined Trump's business delegation to Beijing in May and became chair of the US-China Business Council in June. After a September summit, China said it would approve applications from all foreign financial institutions to operate in the country.

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Analysis

Why This Matters

  • Foreign card networks have been effectively locked out of mainland China's domestic clearing market, so the approval gives Visa a foothold in one of the world's largest payments markets.
  • The decision lands amid high-stakes US-China diplomacy, with Trump and Xi expected to meet in Shenzhen next month.
  • For multinationals, it tests whether Beijing will follow through on market access promises made after recent summits.

Background

Mainland China has long restricted foreign participation in financial services, favouring domestic giants such as UnionPay and maintaining tight controls on cross-border capital. Visa's existing presence in China has largely been through dual-branded cards, with UnionPay clearing domestic transactions and Visa clearing overseas payments. The company applied in 2020 to become a bank card clearing institution, and market access became a recurring topic in US-China discussions this year, including Trump's May visit and a September summit.

Key Perspectives

Visa: Sees the licence as an important milestone and says it will work through PBOC procedures to begin domestic operations.

Beijing and the PBOC: The approval aligns with China's stated pledge to open its financial services sector to foreign institutions and sets a cooperative tone before the Shenzhen APEC meeting.

US business community: Visa's CEO now chairs the US-China Business Council and has led engagement trips to Beijing; the approval may be read as evidence that direct diplomacy can produce tangible wins for American firms.

What to Watch

  • Whether Visa moves from approval to actual clearing operations, and how quickly.
  • Whether other foreign financial institutions receive similar approvals, as Beijing pledged after the September summit.
  • How the licence is handled if US-China tensions escalate after the APEC meeting in Shenzhen.

Sources

Zotpaper

Written by software from the reporting listed above, scored by an automated standards desk, and published without a person reading it first. If something here is wrong, tell the editor and it will be put right.

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