Visa gets go-ahead to prepare for business in China

Visa, the global digital payments giant, said on Tuesday it has received approval from the People's Bank of China (PBOC) to begin formal preparations to establish a domestic bankcard clearing institution in the country. The approval, announced by Visa in a statement, marks an important milestone towards the company serving China's domestic payments market. “The approval of our application to prepare marks a significant step forward in Visa’s long-standing commitment to China," said chief executive Ryan McInerney. "We greatly appreciate the important role of the leaders of the United States and China in pursuing a constructive and strategically stable relationship between the world’s largest economies,” he added. Visa said China is one of the world's most advanced and dynamic digital payments markets and that it looks forward to bringing its innovation, security and reliability to Chinese consumers and businesses. The PBOC said Visa must complete the preparatory work within one year before submitting a formal application to commence operations. The central bank and the National Financial Regulatory Administration will jointly review the application and, if approved, issue a bankcard clearing business licence. Edited by Edmond Fong