China promotes IC bankcards use

BEIJING - Li Dongrong, deputy governor of China's central bank, said on Wednesday that the country will make efforts to promote usage of integrated circuit (IC) bankcards.

IC bankcard users will be able to withdraw money from the bank account linked to the card and transfer it to a separate cash account through terminals such as ATMs across different banks.

Previously, card users could not conduct such cash transfers through another bank's terminal and the number of terminals that supported such functions was limited.

However, Li said that the People's Bank of China, the central bank, has been encouraging different banks to work toward such a service so as to expand the usage of IC bankcards apart from their traditional function as a bankcard.

The separate cash account of an IC bankcard allows cardholders to pay for selected public services such as buses, metros and taxis, and for shopping in supermarkets without the need to enter a pin.

The cash account, when being used for such fast and low-denomination payments, does not connect to the users' bank account, but it is normally set with a payment cap, increasing security.

According to Li, China had issued 340 million IC bankcards by the end of August.