BEIJING – U.S. payments giant Visa announced that it has received formal approval from the People’s Bank of China to establish a domestic bank card clearing business in the country, according to a statement reported by CNBC. The decision marks a significant regulatory milestone for the company after more than four years of waiting on an application first filed in May 2020.
“This marks an important milestone toward the company serving China’s domestic payments market,” Visa stated in its official announcement, as detailed by CNBC. Visa CEO Ryan McInerney noted that the firm has operated in the region for decades. “For more than 40 years, Visa has been an active contributor to China’s dynamic payments landscape,” McInerney said in the CNBC report, adding that the company intends to complete all necessary procedural steps under regulatory oversight.
Company leadership has actively engaged in high-level economic diplomacy supporting market access initiatives. McInerney joined U.S. President Donald Trump’s business delegation to Beijing in May and subsequently assumed the role of chair of the U.S.-China Business Council in June. Furthermore, the Visa CEO led an executive trip to Beijing in early September to advance commercial discussions.
Geopolitical Context and Timing
The regulatory clearance arrives against a backdrop of high-level diplomatic engagements between Washington and Beijing. According to CNBC, the approval coincides with preparations for a third presidential meeting between the leaders of the United States and China this year. Analysts emphasize that the timing is calculated to showcase economic cooperation ahead of upcoming international summits.
“The timing is notable,” George Chen, partner and chair of digital practice at The Asia Group, told CNBC. Chen observed that Beijing’s decision to grant the license immediately ahead of the APEC Leaders’ Meeting in Shenzhen signals a willingness to offer concrete concessions to American commercial interests. Historical reporting indicates that high-level trade discussions earlier in the year touched directly upon market access hurdles for foreign financial institutions. Following a presidential summit in September, Chinese authorities formally stated that Beijing would approve applications from all qualified foreign financial institutions seeking to operate inside the country.
Market Dynamics and Competition
For decades, mainland China has maintained strict oversight of its financial infrastructure, tightly controlling cross-border capital movements and favoring domestic operators. While Visa previously collaborated with local institutions on dual-branded cards—where China’s UnionPay handled domestic routing and Visa managed international transactions—the new clearing license opens direct domestic processing pathways. In January, Visa noted that mainland China-issued cards could be linked to Apple Pay for use overseas, highlighting ongoing integration efforts.
Visa now joins other major international financial networks that have navigated the PBOC approval process. Rival Mastercard’s joint venture commenced processing operations in 2024 following preparation approvals granted in February 2020, as reported by CNBC. Meanwhile, American Express achieved a historic first by securing its operating license in June 2020 following an initial PBOC nod in 2018.
Despite these regulatory openings, foreign clearing networks face formidable competition within China’s digital economy. Daily consumer transactions across the mainland remain overwhelmingly dominated by domestic mobile payment ecosystems, primarily operated through Tencent’s WeChat and Alibaba-affiliate Ant Group’s Alipay.
Reporting source: cnbc.com.