With your China debit card (银行卡), you can now use Alipay / WeChat Pay. Step 3 – Bind your China Bank Account to your Alipay / WeChat Pay I found China Construction Bank (中国建设银行) to be the easiest to use, but that might just have been me. In China, these are the “Big Four”: Bank of China, ICBC, China Construction Bank, and Agricultural Bank of China.Įach bank has a slightly different process though. You’ll probably also want to use a big bank to avoid any potential issues down the road. The entire process is really quick and efficient once you have the right documents, about 30 minutes max. They’ll also create a debit card for you, and you’ll be prompted to create a 6 digit pin. I found the easiest way around this way simply to write my full name in the signature block. Do be careful when signing documents though, because the banks usually want to sight your full name in your signature. You’ll also need to fill in an application form and a tax declaration status. Note: For those who don’t speak Chinese, you can tell them you want to 开账户(open bank account) or 办银行卡 () – or you could just show them the words here ?. You bring all your documents (passport, visa page or visa application form, temporary residence permit) to any bank branch, and they’ll open an account for you. If you have such a residence permit/visa though, then it’s pretty straightforward. This can only be created in China, and as a foreigner, you need to be on a student visa, a work visa, or any other kind of long term residence permit to open an account. with BOC in Singapore).įor Alipay / WeChat Pay, you’ll need an onshore account. So there is a difference between an onshore account created in China, and an offshore account that you may create with a China bank overseas (eg. Unfortunately, because of the way China’s capital controls work, RMB is not a freely transferrable currency. The next and most important thing that you’ll need is a China bank account, with a China debit card (called 银行卡). Step 2 – Get an Onshore China Bank Account You’ll need a China Mobile Number to open a bank account and to register for Alipay / WeChat Pay, so there’s no skipping this step. They’ll need to verify your passport and take a photo of you for facial recognition, and it takes about 10 minutes tops. ![]() This one isn’t so hard, you just pop into any telecom store (the big ones are China Mobile and China Unicom), and you ask to buy a SIM Card (手机卡). The first thing you’ll need to do is to get a China mobile number. How to use or setup Alipay / WeChat Pay as a foreigner in China? Step 1 – Get a China Mobile Number It sounds deceptively simple, but it’s incredibly powerful to be the guy controlling that payment gateway. Alipay / WeChat Pay sits between your bank account and the merchant you’re paying, and it processes that transaction. The easiest way to think about it as a foreigner, is that Alipay / WeChat Pay is the equivalent of Visa, Mastercard or American Express in China. Compare that to where China was a mere 5 years ago, and you’ll start to appreciate how quick the development in this country has been. In China, it’s really all Alipay / WeChat Pay, and if you ask to use cash, you’re just going to get a blank stare.Ĭase in point, the first taxi ride I took from the airport to my accommodation, I asked to pay in cash, and after a short moment of stunned silence the taxi driver replied that he had no spare change for my notes. In Singapore, we are familiar with our Visa and Mastercard, and if that fails, we can always fall back to use good old fashioned cash. And one thing that has always mystified me about China is Alipay and WeChat Pay. But this is a big question for company leaders both foreign and domestic.For those who missed it, Financial Horse is currently based in China. Operating in China is sometimes referred to by multinational companies as investing in China for the world. Given these trends, China is a different playbook for multinational companies. In WeChat you can locate, order and pay for your meal simultaneously without any verbal communication. Fast forward to a day in the life in 2020 and streets are bustling with a new kind of invisible network, all through WeChat. Laid out centuries ago during the Ming and Qing dynasty eras (1368-1912), the hutongs represent traditional life in China. In today’s WeChat world, when navigating through a city like Beijing, you can crisscross along a pathway into China’s past and present. ![]() Led by dynamic founder William Li Bin, NIO is innovating not only in its development of an electric vehicle, but also in its approach to creating a fully integrated consumer lifestyle brand through NIO Houses, aimed at marketing its cars and entertaining its buyers. Backed by Tencent and Baidu (Chinese internet companies), NIO is an example of a local electric car start-up company seeking to differentiate itself through the power of the Chinese consumer.
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