China prepares for open card payments ecosystem

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On Tuesday, the China Banking Regulatory Commission and China’s central bank issued rules that will govern the operation of foreign payment card companies, like Visa and MasterCard, in China.

The entry of foreign players could considerably diversify the market. In order to enter China, card networks must hold 1 billion yuan ($152.4 million) in registered capital in a local company, be locally based, and meet China’s national security and cybersecurity standards, according to Reuters. Companies can apply by meeting the same standards as domestic card networks.

Historically, state-affiliated China UnionPay has held a near monopoly over the country’s card ecosystem, but a 2012 World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling pushed the country to open up to foreign markets. Since then, Chinese banks have begun to issue internationally-branded cards, but few local merchants accept them. That means the cards are mainly used for digital cross-border commerce and purchases made while traveling abroad.

The move could be a boon to major card networks, which have been waiting for direct access to China for years. Chinese consumers spent 55 trillion yuan ($8.4 trillion) on payment cards in 2015, and China is expected to be the largest card payment market in the world by 2020, according to Reuters. Grabbing even a small portion of that market could significantly boost total card spend for networks. For context, a 10% share of that spend in China equates to about 8.4% of the Nilson Report's listing of Visa's total global 2015 volume.

The opening of China to more foreign card companies is one piece of the ongoing evolution of the worldwide payments ecosystem, which is undergoing major changes even as we speak.

Evan Bakker and John Heggestuen, analysts at BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, have compiled a detailed report on the payments ecosystem that drills into the industry to explain how a broad range of transactions are processed, including prepaid and store cards, as well as revealing which types of companies are in the best and worst position to capitalize on the latest industry trends.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• 2016 will be a watershed year for the payments industry. Payments companies are improving security, expanding their mobile offerings, and building commerce capabilities that will give consumers a more compelling reason to make purchases using digital devices.
• Payments is an extremely complex industry. To understand the next big digital opportunity lies, it's critical to understand how the traditional credit- and debit-processing chain works and what roles acquirers, processors, issuing banks, card networks, independent sales organizations, gateways, and software and hardware providers play.
• Alternative technologies could disrupt the processing ecosystem. Devices ranging from refrigerators to smartwatches now feature payment capabilities, which will spur changes in consumer payment behaviors. Likewise, blockchain technology, the protocol that underlies Bitcoin, could one day change how consumer card payments are verified.

In full, the report:

• Uncovers the key themes and trends affecting the payments industry in 2016 and beyond.
• Gives a detailed description of the stakeholders involved in a payment transaction, along with hardware and software providers.
• Offers diagrams and infographics explaining how card transactions are processed and which players are involved in each step.
• Provides charts on our latest forecasts, key company growth, survey results, and more.
• Analyzes the alternative technologies, including blockchain, which could further disrupt the ecosystem.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide, choose one of these options:

1. Subscribe to an ALL-ACCESS Membership with BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report AND over 100 other expertly researched deep-dive reports, subscriptions to all of our daily newsletters, and much more. >> START A MEMBERSHIP
2. Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> BUY THE REPORT

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the payments ecosystem.