CHINA DOES NOT LIKE CASH ANYMORE
Feb 15, 2018 By NetFin
Many factors explains the increasing use of new payment methods in China like credit cards and online payments
In China, the long tradition of paying everything by cash is about to disappear.
Chinese people have changing their payment habits to virtual payments faster than anybody in the world.
Figures from Central Bank of China , published last year, are showing a big increase in using all kind of virtual payments like debit cards, credit cards, online payments.
There are over 4 billions bank cards in China which means that each person in China has at least 3 of them.
There are 10 times more debit cards than credit cards but the use of credit cards has increased by 19% in 2013 and Euromonitor predicts that their usage is going to increase faster than any other cards in the next 5 years.
The constant lower usage of cash is all the more interesting for a country that has been the first one to print bank notes 1000 years ago.
Until recently, cash was so important that even big buys like car or house were purchases using the red bank notes showing Mao Zedong.
MasterCard is showing in one of its world while study that China is passing from “all cash to no cash” at a much faster pace than any other country, especially because of fast urbanization and government policies set up in order to discourage payments by cash.
The Chinese consumer urban, well-off, internet user appreciates even more those new payment methods in China.
A recent poll from Nielsen is showing that 71% of consumers in biggest China cites prefer payment by banking card than cash. This figure is 50% in other countries.
Le consommateur chinois urbain, aisé, utilisateur d’internet, apprécie encore plus ces nouveaux moyens de paiement. Un récent sondage Nielsen révèle que 71% des consommateurs dans les plus grandes villes chinoises préféraient les cartes bancaires aux espèces. Ce chiffre est de 50% dans les autres pays.The popularity of mobile payment applications is increasing strongly when paying small transactions like taxi rides , cinema tickets or traditional Chinese New Year HongbaoNew Chinese generation often comments that bank notes are dirty , smelly and have also good chances of being fake.
Nevertheless , it is worth noting that many bank card users ask for a card only to benefit from a special offer. And majority of people living in smaller cities or country side still prefer payment by cash.
The huge increase of China e-commerce is also an important reason for using new payment methods in China.
Coming from big cities or country side, Chinese people like more and more to buy from a China e-shop than from the traditional market.