Laws of the People's Republic of China

Measures for the Administration of Bank Card Business

(People's Bank of China January 27th, 1999)

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1

In order to enhance the administration of bank card business, prevent the risks in bank card business and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of commercial banks, cardholders, specially engaged entities and other parties concerned, the present Measures are constituted subject to the Law of the People's Republic of China on the People's Bank of China, the Law of the People's Republic of China on Commercial Banks, the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on the Administration of Foreign Exchanges and the related administrative laws and regulations.

Article 2

Bank card as referred to in the present Measures are the credit payment instruments issued by commercial banks (including postal financial institutions, similarly hereafter) to the society, which have some or all such functions as consumption credit, transfer and settlement and depositing and withdrawing cash, etc..

Without the approval of the People's Bank of China, no commercial bank may issue any bank card.

Article 3

All the commercial banks, cardholders and merchants that handle the bank card business within the territory of the People's Republic of China and other parties concerned shall abide by the provisions of the present Measures.

Article 4

Commercial banks shall, on the basis of negotiation and mutual benefit, carry out information sharing, merchant sharing, machine sharing and other types of combination in bank card business.

Chapter II Categorization and Definition

Article 5

Bank cards are divided into credit cards and debit cards.

Bank cards may be divided into Renminbi cards and foreign currency cards in light of the type of the currency; entity cards (commercial card) and individual cards in light of the objective of issuance; and magnetic cards and integrated circuit (IC) cards in light of the information carrier.

Article 6

Credit cards may be divided into credit cards and quasi-credit cards subject to whether it has deposited an imprest in the card-issuing bank.

Credit card permits the cardholder to consume before payment within the credit limit granted by the card-issuing bank.

Quasi-credit card requires the cardholder to deposit a certain amount of imprest in the card-issuing bank in advance as provided for by this bank, and permits the cardholder to overdraw, when the balance in the account of imprest is not sufficient to pay, within the credit limit provided for by the card-issuing bank.

Article 7

Debit cards may be divided into cards for transferring accounts (including savings cards, similarly hereinafter), cards for special purposes and stored-value cards. Overdrawing is not included in the function of the debit cards.

Article 8

The card for transferring accounts belongs to the debit card, which performs a utility of real-time deduction of accounts. Its functions comprise transfer, settlement, depositing and withdrawing cash, and consumption.

Article 9

The card for special purpose means the debit card, which is used in certain designated location for any special purpose. Its functions comprise transfer, settlement, depositing and withdrawing cash.

Special purpose means that it shall be used other than in the industries of general merchandise, catering, restaurant and entertainment.

Article 10

Stored-value card is the purse-style debit card which requires payment in advance, and the money of the cardholder is transferred into this card by the card-issuing bank as required by the cardholder, and then when a transaction is made, the money is deducted from the card.

Article 11

Co-branded/affinity card is an supplementary product of bank card issued by a commercial bank in cooperation with a profitable/non-profitable institution, the category of the bank card it supplements must be a category that has the approval of the People's Bank of China and the issuance and operation of the said category of the bank card shall comply with the business regulations or administrative measures accordingly.

The card-issuing bank and the co-branded entities shall promise a certain discount or special services for the cardholders when any consumption using the cards occurs to any of the co-branded entities. If any cardholder obtains and uses the affinity card, it indicates their support to the affinity entities.

Article 12

Integrated circuit (IC) card may be applied to a single category of bank card, and to a combined category of bank cards as well.

Chapter III Examination and Approval of Bank Card Business

Article 13

Any commercial bank that develops the bank card business shall meet the requirements as follows:

(1)

it shall have been opened for three years or more and have a sound foundation for handling retail business;

(2)

it shall comply with the indicators as issued by the People's Bank of China for asset-liability ratio administration and surveillance and it shall have a sound business performance;

(3)

it shall have set up a scientific and perfect internal control system for this business and have specific procedures for the examination and approval of internal authorization;

(4)

it shall have qualified management and technical personnel and administrative department accordingly;

(5)

it shall have a safe and efficient computer processing system;

(6)

it shall have the qualification for developing the foreign exchange business and have the corresponding operational and administrative expertise for the foreign exchange business in case of issuing any foreign currency card;

(7)

other requirements as provided for by the People's Bank of China.

Article 14

A commercial bank that satisfies the aforesaid requirements may apply for developing the bank card business to the People's Bank of China and shall file the materials as follows:

(1)

an application report that demonstrating the necessity and feasibility and performing market forecasts;

(2)

articles of association or administrative measures for the bank card, draft card designs;

(3)

internal control system and risk prevention measures;

(4)

a testing report concerning system security and qualified technical standards as issued by the competent authorities of science and technology of the People's Bank of China;

(5)

other materials as required by the People's Bank of China.

Article 15

The articles of association of any bank card of a card-issuing bank shall indicate items as follows:

(1)

the name, category, functions and purposes of the card;

(2)

the target for issuing the card, requirements and procedure of the application for the card;

(3)

the using scope of the card (including the limitations in using the card) and the using introduction;

(4)

the interest rate applicable to the account of the card, charging items and rates against the cardholder;

(5)

the rights and obligations of the card-issuing bank, the cardholder as well as other parties concerned;

(6)

other items as required by the People's Bank of China.

Article 16

The limits of the administrative authority and procedures for the examination and approval of a bank card are as follows:

(1)

Where a commercial bank develops any kind of the bank card business, it shall separately constitute uniform articles of association or business management measures under the provisions of the People's Bank of China on enhancing internal control and the administration of authorization and credit granting, and shall submit them to the headquarters of the People's Bank of China for examination and approval.

In case the headquarters of the commercial bank is not in Beijing, the said articles of association or business management measures shall be firstly submitted to the local central sub-branch of the People's Bank of China, after approval upon examination, and then be transmitted to the headquarters of the People's Bank of China for examination and approval.

(2)

Where a commercial bank has already engaged in the business of credit card or transfer card, it may apply for issuing co-branded/affinity cards, cards for special purposes and stored-value cards to the People's Bank of China; where a commercial bank has already engaged in the Renminbi credit card business, it may apply to for issuing foreign currency credit cards the People's Bank of China.

(3)

As regards a commercial bank that proposes to issue national affinity cards, IC cards or stored-value cards, it shall be submitted to the headquarters of the People's Bank of China for examination and approval.

(4)

In case any branch of a commercial bank develops the bank card business as approved by the headquarters of the People's Bank of China, it shall be submitted to the local branch of the People's Bank of China for filing with the approval document of the People's Bank of China and the authorization document of its headquarters.

If a branch of a commercial bank proposes to issue cards for special purposes or co-branded cards that may only be used in certain regions, it shall be submitted to the local central sub-branch of the People's Bank of China for filing with the authorization document of the headquarters of the commercial bank or the agreement concluded by both co-branded parties.

(5)

In case of any alteration of the name of any bank card or amendment of the articles of association on bank card by a commercial bank, it shall be submitted for examination and approval to the People's Bank of China.

Article 17

A foreign-funded financial institution that proposes to develop bank card acceptance business shall apply to the People's Bank of China for approval.

Bank card acceptance business refers to the domestic or foreign currency settlement service provided by a contractual bank for its merchants.

Chapter IV Interest Calculation and Charging Rates

Article 18

Bank card interest calculation shall contain the calculation of the interests to be collected and the calculation of the interests to be paid. The card-issuing bank shall examine and calculate both the said interests in light of the provisions of the Financial Rules for Financial and Insurance Enterprises.

Article 19

With respect to the deposits in the accounts of quasi-credit cards and debit cards (excluding stored-value cards), interests shall be calculated and paid by the card-issuing bank according to the deposit interest rate of the same term and same grade and the methods for interest calculation as provided for by the People's Bank of China.

The interests on the deposits in the accounts of credit cards and the currency value of the stored-value cards (including the electronic purses of IC cards) may not be calculated and paid by any card-issuing bank.

Article 20

Where a credit cardholder has non-cash transactions, he may enjoy the favorable terms as follows:

(1)

Treatment of enjoying interest-free payment in a certain period. A period from the booking date of the bank to the date when payment is due as provided for by the card-issuing bank shall be the interest-free period with the longest term of 60 days. The cardholder may enjoy this treatment if he repays all the used funds of the bank before the date when payment is due and no interest may be paid for any non-cash transaction.

(2)

Treatment of minimum payment. In case it is difficult for the cardholder to repay all the funds of the bank before the date when payment is due, the minimum amount may be paid as provided for by the card-issuing bank.

Article 21

A credit cardholder may not enjoy the treatment of interest-free payment period when choosing to repay the minimum amount or using the card in excess of the credit limit approved by the card-issuing bank, but shall pay overdraft interests on the unpaid amount as calculated from the book date of the bank upon the stipulated interest rate.

A credit cardholder may not enjoy the treatment of interest-free payment period and the treatment of minimum payment when withdrawing cash or overdrawing quasi-credit card, but the overdraft interests that are calculated from the book date of the bank upon the stipulated interest rate shall be paid for the cash transaction or overdraft.

Article 22

In case a credit cardholder fails to repay the minimum payment or uses the credit card in excess of the credit limit, a fine for delayed payment or charge fees for exceeding the credit limit shall be imposed by the card-issuing bank upon 5 percent of the unpaid amount or the amount spent in excess of the credit limit.

Article 23

The overdraft of credit card shall be calculated and collected for compound interest on a monthly basis and the overdraft of quasi-credit card shall be calculated and collected for simple interest on a monthly basis. The overdraft interest rate shall be 0.05 percent of the daily interest rate and shall be consist with the adjustment of the daily interest of the People's Bank of China.

Article 24

A commercial bank, when handling bank card acceptance business, shall collect settlement handling charges against the merchants under the standards as follows:

(1)

the settlement handling charges may not be lower than 2 percent of the trading value for the hotel, catering, entertainment, tourism or other related industries;

(2)

the settlement handling charges may not be lower than 1 percent of the trading value for any other industry.

Article 25

The settlement handling charges for a trans-bank transaction shall be distributed in light of the proportion as follows:

(1)

It is clearly that 90 percent of the settlement handling charges collected against the merchants shall be distributed to the card-issuing bank, while 10 percent to the acceptance bank in a city which has not established an information exchange center;

The commercial banks may perform the trans-bank transaction by way of apportioning the machines, deputizing for each other, and charging free mutually upon negotiations as well.

(2)

It is clearly that 80 percent of the settlement handling charges collected against the merchants shall be distributed to the card-issuing bank, while 10 percent to the acceptance bank and 10 percent to the information exchange center in a city which has established an information exchange center,.

Article 26

Where a cardholder performs trans-bank withdrawal at ATM, the cost thereof shall be accepted by the cardholder himself/herself, and the charging rates shall be adopted as follows:

(1)

in case a cardholder performs any withdrawal within the city where the card is obtained, the fees thereof shall be no more than Renminbi 2 yuan;

(2)

in case a cardholder performs any withdrawal beyond the city where the card is obtained, the fees thereof shall be no less than Renminbi 8 yuan.

It is obvious that 70 percent of the commission charges obtained from a trans-bank withdrawal at ATM shall be distributed to the bank that owns the ATM, while 30 percent to the information exchange center.

Article 27

Where a commercial bank develops bank card acceptance business outside the territory of China as an agency, it shall collect settlement handling charges, which shall be no more than 4 percent of the trading value, against the merchants.

In case an agency agreement on bank card acceptance business is concluded by a bank within the territory of China and an institution outside the territory of China, it is clearly that 37.5 percent of the commission charges paid by the merchants shall be distributed to the bank within the territory of China, while 62.5% to the institution outside the territory of China.

Chapter V Account and Trade Management

Article 28

Where an individual applies for obtaining a bank card (excluding stored-value cards), he shall provide his valid identity certificate as provided for by the public security department for the card-issuing bank, an inscribed account shall be opened for him upon the qualification examination of the card-issuing bank.

Where an entity opens a basic deposit account in any financial institution that is within the territory of China, it shall apply for obtaining an entity card on the basis of the license for opening an account issued by the People's Bank of China upon examination;

A bank card and its account may be used exclusively by the cardholder as approved by the card-issuing bank and may not be leased or lent.

Article 29

The funds in the account of a Renminbi entity card shall be deposited from the basic deposit account of the entity by transfer, no cash may be deposited or withdrawn, and no revenue from merchandise sales may be deposited into the account of the entity card.

Article 30

The funds in the account of a foreign currency entity card shall be deposited from the foreign exchange account of the entity by transfer, and no cash of foreign currency may be deposited or withdrawn within the territory of China. The foreign exchange account of the entity shall meet the requirements as follows:

(1)

it shall be opened subject to the related provisions of the People's Bank of China concerning the administration of foreign exchange accounts within the territory of China;

(2)

the scope of revenue and expenditure thereof shall comprise payment content accordingly.

Article 31

The funds deposited in the account of the Renminbi card of an individual shall include the cash he holds, or the wage, legal personal compensation for services and investment returns of the individual which are deposited by account transfer.

Article 32

The funds deposited in the account of the individual foreign currency card shall be cash of the foreign currency he/she holds or the funds transferred from his/her foreign exchange account (including foreign banknote account). The transfer and deposit of such account shall be handled pursuant to the Measures of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange for the Administration of Individual Foreign Exchange.

As regards the withdrawal of the foreign currency cash through an individual foreign currency card within the territory of China, it shall be handled under the individual foreign exchange control system of China.

Article 33

No settlement of foreign exchange may be made for a foreign currency card in principle within the territory of China except that it is within the scope or the regions designated by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

Article 34

A cardholder may apply for canceling his account after paying off all the money for transactions, principal and interest of overdraft and the related charges. The capital in a Renminbi entity account shall be transferred into the basic savings account of the entity, the capital in a foreign currency entity card shall be transferred into the foreign exchange account of the entity accordingly when canceling an account and no cash may be drawn.

Article 35

A Renminbi entity card may be used for the settlement of the funds for commodity transactions and labor service provision, but no overdrawing may be performed; the transfer of foreign exchange shall be handled by the local branch of the People's Bank of China if it surpasses the starting point provided for by the People's Bank of China,.

Article 36

The cash withdrawal of credit card shall be authorized by a card-issuing bank on every deal, the accumulated amount of the cash withdrawn each day for each card may not in excess of Renminbi 2000 yuan.

An upper limit shall be set by the card-issuing bank for the withdrawal made on ATM, the accumulated amount of the cash withdrawn each day for each card shall be less than Renminbi 5000 yuan.

Article 37

The face value or the value stored in a stored-value card shall be no more than Renminbi 1000 yuan.

Article 38

Where a commercial bank issues the affinity card, it may not grant any donation or pay any other fees to any affinity entity from its income.

Article 39

In case a card-issuing bank handles such business as deposit, withdrawal, account transfer, settlement or any other transaction for a cardholder upon password or any other electronic information, the electronic information record generated therefrom shall be the valid vouchers of this transaction. The card-issuing bank may use the itemized record or detailed list of the transaction as supporting vouchers for the accounts.

Article 40

The original documents, which are generated from the transaction made with a bank card through any interconnected terminal, shall be kept for two years at least for reference.

Chapter VI Bank Card Risk Management

Article 41

A card-issuing bank shall examine and verify the credit status of an applicant for credit card seriously and determine the valid guarantee and method of guarantee upon the strength of the credit status of the applicant.

A card-issuing bank shall recheck the credit status of a credit cardholder regularly and adjust the credit limit of the cardholder subject to the alteration of the credit status.

Article 42

A system for approval authorization shall be established by any card-issuing bank to define the approval power and transaction limit of its internal staff of different levels specifically.

Article 43

A card-issuing bank shall enhance the administration of the name list of stop payment, and shall receive and send this list timely.

Article 44

A card-issuing bank, when handling any agency business through a debit card, may not make advance payment for the cardholder or the client.

Article 45

A card-issuing bank shall comply with the following risk control indicators for the credit card business:

(1)

as regards an individual card, the amount occurred in a single overdraft by a same cardholder shall be no more than Renminbi 20,000 yuan (including the equivalent of foreign currency); as regards an entity card, the said amount no more than Renminbi 50,000 yuan (including the equivalent of foreign currency).

(2)

as regards an individual card, the monthly overdraft balance of a same account shall be less than Renminbi 50,000 yuan (including the equivalent of foreign currency); as regards an entity card, the said balance less than 3 percent of the comprehensive credit limit granted by the card-issuing bank to the entity. The monthly overdraft balance of an entity without comprehensive credit limit shall be less than Renminbi 100,000 yuan (including the equivalent of foreign currency).

(3)

the total overdraft of a foreign currency card may not be more than 80 percent of the guarantee money (including the amount from pledging the certificate of deposits) of the cardholder.

(4)

the monthly average overdraft balance newly occurred in more than 180 days (including 180 days, similarly hereinafter) as of the date when the present Measures implement may be in excess of 15percent of the monthly average amount of the total overdraft balance.

Article 46

The overdraft term of a quasi-credit card shall not exceed 60 days. The minimum payment of a credit card in the first month may not be lower than 10 percent of the overdraft balance of that month.

Article 47

In case of any overdrawing or defrauding business, a card-issuing bank may recover the money through the channels as follows:

(1)

deducting the cardholder's guarantee money, disposing the collaterals or pledged articles in accordance with the related laws;

(2)

recovering the overdrawn amount from the guarantor;

(3)

recovering the money by judicial procedures.

Article 48

Where it is not enough to offset the loss after taking the measures listed in Article 47 by a card-issuing bank, it shall be handled pursuant to the Measures for the Administration of the Reserves for Bad Loans.

Article 49

As regards a recovered overdraft that is already canceled, the principal and interest thereof shall be added to the reserves for bad loans.

Article 50

In case a branch of a commercial bank pays for participating in the bank card information exchange center of the city where it is located, it shall apply to the headquarters thereof for approval.

Chapter VII Duties and Responsibilities between the Bank Card Parties

Article 51

The rights of a card-issuing bank are as follows:

(1)

it has the right to perform an examination of the credit status of an applicant, require for its personal information, decide whether to issue bank card to an applicant and determine the overdraft limit of a credit cardholder as well.

(2)

it is entitled to recover the overdraft made by a cardholder. If any cardholder fails to repay the overdraft amount within the prescribed time limit, the card-issuing bank has the right to apply for lawful protection and investigate the legal liabilities of the cardholder or the related parties concerned in accordance with the related laws.

(3)

as regards a cardholder that fails to abide by its articles of association, it has the right to cancel the qualification thereof and may authorize the related entity to take the bank card back.

(4)

it may neglect the reporting of loss of the electronic purse in any stored-value card or IC card.

Article 52

The obligations of a card-issuing bank are as follows:

(1)

The related materials concerning the use of bank card shall be offered for an applicant for bank card, including the articles of association, introductions and charging rates. Any current cardholder may require for the aforesaid materials as well.

(2)

A complaint system shall be established focusing on the fairness and effectiveness of bank card services, and the complaint procedures and telephone number shall be publicized. It shall make a reply regarding the inquiry or requirement of correction from a cardholder within 30 days.

(3)

The account-checking services shall be offered for cardholders. The account statements shall be provided for cardholders monthly except for any of circumstances as follows:

(a)

a deposit book or any other transaction log has provided to the cardholder already;

(b)

no transaction incurs since the account statement of the previous month is made and there is no unpaid balance in the account of the cardholder;

(c)

it has agreed otherwise with the cardholder.

(4)

As regards a bank card account statement as provided by the card-issuing bank to a cardholder, the following items shall be listed:

(a)

value of transaction, account balance (and as regards a credit card, the date when repayment is due, minimum payment and available credit limit shall also be listed);

(b)

the date when the trading value is recorded into the related account or self-owned account for deduction;

(c)

trading date and category;

(d)

the number of transaction logs;

(e)

name and code number of the merchant acting as the target of payment (excluding the transactions occurring in other places);

(f)

address or telephone number for inquiring or reporting incompatible account statements.

(5)

The service for reporting bank card loss shall be provided by any card-issuing bank for cardholders, a round-clock telephone line therefrom shall be set, and the card issuing bank shall provide two ways for loss reporting, namely by telephone or in written form, and the latter is the official way for loss reporting. The responsibilities for loss reporting of both the card-issuing bank and the cardholder shall be specified in the article of association or the related agreement.

(6)

The importance of password and the liability for its loss to the cardholders shall be clarified in the related articles of association on bank card or the introductions.

(7)

A card-issuing bank shall be responsible for keeping secret for the credit information of the cardholders.

Article 53

The rights of a cardholder are as follows:

(1)

A cardholder has the rights to enjoy all kinds of services on bank card as promised by the card-issuing bank, supervise the service quality and complaint the incompetent service if any.

(2)

An applicant or cardholder has the rights to be aware of the functions, use methods, charging items, charging rates, applicable interest rate and the related calculation formula of the card he selected.

(3)

A cardholder has the right to demand the account statement from the card-issuing bank within the prescribed time limit and is entitled to inquire into the incompatible content or ask the bank to remedy.

(4)

The cardholder shall assume the responsibility for the alteration of the capital deposited in the debit card no more after going through the formalities for reporting the loss of a debit card, except it is adjudicated otherwise by the judicial department or arbitral department.

(5)

A cardholder in entitled to require for the agreement concerning obtaining credit card and shall keep the agreement properly.

Article 54

The obligations of a cardholder are as follows:

(1)

An applicant shall give truthful application materials to a card-issuing bank and provide guarantee consistent with the related requirements as provided for by the card-issuing bank.

(2)

A cardholder shall abide by the articles of association of the card-issuing bank and the related articles of the Agreement on Obtaining Bank Card.

(3)

In case of any alterations of the address or occupation of a cardholder or guarantor, the card-issuing bank shall be informed in written form timely.

(4)

No cardholder may refuse to pay the fees owed to the card-issuing bank with an excuse of having any dispute with any merchant.

Article 55

In case a commercial bank develops a merchant that accepts bank card business, it shall sign an acceptance agreement with the merchant, which may not contain any exclusive article. The agreement may not be protected by law if the charging rates for commission charges stipulated in an acceptance agreement are lower than the standards stipulated in the present Measures.

Article 56

Both the application form for bank card and the agreement on obtaining bank card are contractual documents that are used for determining the rights and responsibilities of both parties as provided by a card-issuing bank for a cardholder, it indicates that any cardholder accepts all the provisions therein when he affix his signature.

The card issuing bank shall prepare bankcard application forms and credit card application agreements by following the principle of equivalence between rights and obligations.

Chapter VIII Penalty Provisions

Article 57

In case of any of the following circumstances occurs to any commercial bank, it shall be ordered to make corrections by the People's Bank of China; in case of any illegal gains, a fine of not less than double the illegal gains but not more than 3 times the illegal gains may be imposed, but the fine may not exceed Renminbi 30,000 yuan; in case of no illegal gains, a fine may be imposed under the related laws and regulations; in case of any serious circumstance, the directly liable person in charge and the related directly liable personnel shall be investigated for administrative liabilities, and the related leaders shall also be subject to legal liabilities if the circumstance is serious:

(1)

it issues bank cards without authorization or plays falsification in applying for developing bank card business;

(2)

it is in violation of the standards for interest calculation or the charging rates as stipulated in the present Measures;

(3)

it is in violation of any provision as stipulated in the present Measures on the administration of bank card accounts and transactions.

Article 58

As regards any card-issuing bank that fails to abide by the risk management measures or risk control indicators as stipulated in the present Measures, it shall be ordered by the People's Bank of China to make corrections and be given a notice of criticism circulated.

Article 59

As of any cardholder that leases or lends his credit card or the corresponding account, he shall be ordered by the card-issuing bank to make corrections and a fine of less than 1000 yuan (which shall be provided for by the card-issuing bank in the application form, card application agreement or any other contractual document in advance) shall be imposed upon it.

Article 60

As regards any cardholder that deposits the cash of an entity into the account of entity card or deposits the funds of an entity into the account of individual card, he shall be ordered by the People's Bank of China to make corrections and a fine of less than Renminbi 1000 yuan shall be imposed upon the entity that owns the entity card and the cardholder that owns the individual card.

Article 61

In case of any of the following circumstances occurs to any entity or individual, , it shall be handled subject to the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China and the related laws and regulations:

(1)

obtaining any credit card by any fraudulent means or falsely using credit card;

(2)

forging or altering any bank card;

(3)

making baleful overdrafts;

(4)

defrauding bank funds by using bank card or the related machines.

Article 62

As regards any foreign-funded financial institution that develops credit card acceptance business without authorization, it shall be ordered by the People's Bank of China to make corrections and a punishment shall be imposed pursuant to the related provisions of the Regulations on the Administration of Foreign-funded Financial Institutions.

Article 63

As regards any representative agency of a non-financial institution or financial institution that develops bank card business, it shall be cancelled by the People's Bank of China in accordance with related laws.

Chapter IX Supplementary Provisions

Article 64

In case of any category of bank card issued by a commercial bank (or financial institution) within the territory of the People's Republic of China the technical standards shall be performed as provided for by the state, except for those with the mark of any international credit card organization.

A relief stamp of such characters as "DWK" shall be marked at a proper place of the bottom left of the card as regards an entity card.

The following elements shall be indicated on the surface of a bank card: name of the primary legal person of the card-issuing bank, uniform brand name, brand mark (except the cards for special purposes), card number (except IC cards), points of attention for the cardholder, customer service telephone number, signature bar for the cardholder (except IC cards), etc.

Article 65

The present Measures shall apply to the circulation within the territory of China and use of bank cards issued by other financial institutions and institutions outside the territory of China approved by the People's Bank of China as qualified for developing bank card business.

Article 66

The present Measures are subject to the interpretation of the People's Bank of China.

Article 67

The present Measures shall enter into force as of March 1, 1999. All the card-issuing banks shall satisfy the related requirements stipulated in the present Measures within half a year. The Measures for the Administration of Credit Card Business (Yin Fa [1996] No. 27) promulgated by the People's Bank of China in 1996 shall be concurrently annulled. Where any provision on bank card management promulgated by the People's Bank of China before the promulgation of the present Measures conflicts with the present Measures, the latter shall prevail.