On the 17th, the "Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Non-bank Payment Institutions" was promulgated, which will come into force on May 1, 2024, which is the first administrative regulation in the field of supervision of non-bank payment institutions, and the first administrative regulation in the financial field issued after the first financial work conference.
Non-bank payment institutions are non-bank institutions that are allowed to handle online payment business, such as Alipay, WeChat Pay, etc., which we often use.
As of the end of September 2023, there were 185 non-bank payment institutions in the country. At present, the annual transaction amount of payment institutions has reached nearly 400 trillion yuan, serving more than 1 billion individuals and tens of millions of merchants. What will be the impact of the new regulations on this trillion-level market? What kind of convenience will it bring to the people?
01What are the contents of the regulations?
The Regulations consist of 6 chapters and 60 articles, focusing on four aspects, including clarifying the definition and establishment license of non-bank payment institutions, improving payment business rules, protecting the legitimate rights and interests of users, and clarifying regulatory responsibilities and legal responsibilities.
The Regulations focus on the important role of the non-bank payment industry in helping the development of the real economy and improving people's livelihood; It has strengthened the guidance on the functional positioning and development of payment institutions, guiding them to adhere to the purpose of small amounts and convenience for the people, focus on their main business, improve services, and better meet the payment and settlement needs of users. Strengthen user orientation, and greatly enhance the protection of user rights and interests; In terms of comprehensively strengthening supervision, preventing and mitigating risks, a more powerful mechanism has been formed.
The person in charge of the Payment and Clearing Association told reporters that from this point of view, the "Regulations" are the "basic law" for the healthy and sustainable development of non-bank payment services.
02What are the problems in the payment industry? What's new in the Ordinance?
At present, China's mobile payment ranks at the world's leading level, effectively helping the development of the real economy and improving people's livelihood.
However, at the same time, the phenomenon of illegal operation of some payment institutions also occurs from time to time, such as: misappropriation of user funds in violation of regulations, leakage or improper collection and use of user information; Individual payment institutions have taken risks to provide channels for the transfer of funds for illegal and criminal activities such as telecommunications network fraud and cross-border gambling.
In response to these problems, one of the key contents of the "Regulations" is to greatly strengthen the protection of users' rights and interests. On the one hand, it is clarified that payment institutions shall not misappropriate, occupy or borrow customer reserves, and shall not forge or alter payment instructions, and at the same time, with regard to the protection of user rights and interests that consumers are generally concerned about, the Regulations require payment institutions to respect the legitimate rights and interests of users such as their right to make their own choices and the right to know, and to disclose relevant information to users in a timely manner; It also requires payment institutions to take measures to ensure the security of users' personal information and prevent user information from being leaked or abused, which provides consumers with "peace of mind", and consumers can use various online and mobile payment services more confidently and safely.
03 Strict entry threshold and increase penalties
The Regulations clearly adhere to the licensed operation and strict entry thresholds. Payment institutions must implement access management in accordance with the principle of "license before license", clarify the access conditions for payment institutions' registered capital, major shareholders, actual controllers, senior executives, etc., implement license management for changes in major matters, and establish and improve a normalized exit mechanism for institutions with serious violations of laws and regulations.
In addition, the "Regulations" clearly state that the punishment for serious violations of laws and regulations will be increased in accordance with the law.
04 How to be punished? Who will penalize?
The Regulations specify that the People's Bank of China may, in accordance with the law, impose penalties on relevant payment institutions, restrict some payment operations, or order them to suspend business for rectification, up to the revocation of their payment business licenses. At the same time, it is clarified that directors, supervisors, senior executives and other personnel who are directly responsible may be punished according to specific circumstances, and market entry ban measures may also be adopted if the circumstances are serious.
05What do payment institutions think?
The new payment regulations involve not only leading payment institutions, but also small and medium-sized payment institutions, as well as representatives of private and foreign-funded payment institutions.
What will be the impact of the implementation of the new regulations on the industry? Alipay, WeChat and other related business leaders have spoken. Payment institutions said that the "Regulations" will be conducive to the further standardization and healthy development of the non-bank payment industry, and make positive contributions to the development of the real economy and the improvement of people's livelihood.
1. Alipay: It is conducive to the standardized and orderly development of the payment industry
The relevant person in charge of Alipay said that the implementation of the "Regulations" has laid the foundation for healthy competition and standardized and healthy development for the future development of payment institutions. The regulations further strengthen the supervision of the whole chain and the whole cycle of payment institutions, which is conducive to preventing risks in the payment industry. At the same time, under the role of regulation, the payment industry will usher in further standardized and orderly development, which is also conducive to the long-term development of the real industry.
2. Tenpay: There are fundamental regulations in the payment industry
Tenpay said that the promulgation of the "Regulations" has, on the one hand, improved the legal level of supervision of payment institutions, from the original departmental rules to administrative regulations, marking the fundamental regulations of the payment industry, which is conducive to strengthening industry supervision, improving regulatory efficiency, and establishing regulatory authority; On the other hand, it conforms to the development and change trend of the payment service market, lays a solid foundation for standardizing the compliance operation of payment institutions, and points out the way for the high-quality development of payment services.
3. PayPal payment: payment institutions can operate more legally and standardly
The promulgation and implementation of this regulation is conducive to the establishment of long-term stable expectations for all parties in the industry, and the payment institutions can operate more legally and standardly, so as to ensure the healthy and sustainable development of the payment industry. Strict access to payment institutions is one of the important measures to ensure the development of the payment industry. The Regulations have further improved and optimized the conditions and standards for the access of payment institutions, making them more scientific and standardized. This measure will help improve the strength and service quality of the entire industry, and provide more secure and reliable payment services for users and merchants.
4. Hezhong Yibao: The industry expects to escort the high-quality development of the payment industry
As the payment industry moves from a period of rapid development to a mature period, some problems are gradually exposed, and risk events such as business alienation, misappropriation of funds, and data leakage occur from time to time. The use of payment platforms by some institutions to engage in illegal fundraising, telecommunications network fraud and other illegal and criminal activities has damaged the image and reputation of the industry, disrupted the financial order, and infringed on the legitimate rights and interests of financial consumers. The contradiction that the existing payment regulatory system is not at a high level, has limited legal effect, and cannot fully meet the needs of market regulation and development is becoming increasingly prominent. It is expected that the "Regulations" will strengthen the supervision of the whole chain and the whole cycle of the non-bank payment industry, which is conducive to giving full play to the role of the law in guaranteeing the fundamentals, stable expectations and long-term benefits of the industry, and empowering and escorting the high-quality development of the payment industry.
*: CCTV news client.
Editor-in-charge: Cheng Yumeng).