Taiwan Today

The Financial Supervisory Commission under the Executive Yuan announced July 15 that China UnionPay cardholders will soon be able to make purchases in Taiwanese stores. A China UnionPay card is a credit or debit card with a China UnionPay logo printed on it. It is in effect a card issued in mainland China. Up until now tourists holding credit cards issued in mainland China have not been able to use their cards in Taiwan. Given the ease of use of credit and debit cards, the new regulations, as contained in “the Regulations Governing Approvals of Banks to Engage in Financial Activities between the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area,” are expected to boost travel and spending in Taiwan. It is estimated that the new regulations will result in increased spending in the amount of NT$100 billion (US$3 billion) per year. As Taiwan banks will be able to process China UnionPay bills, they stand to earn at least an extra NT$2 billion annually from handling fees. Merchants should be able to start accepting China UnionPay cards by September at the earliest. Shiau Chang-ruey, deputy director-general of the Banking Bureau under the FSC, said once the new rule becomes effective, the FSC will start accepting applications from local banks and the National Credit Card Center for regulatory approval to handle transactions made with China UnionPay cards. China UnionPay is a national payment network in mainland China, with more than 1 billion cards issued on its network. In addition to issuing credit and debit cards, it also manages inter-bank information exchanges, and the clearing and settlement of capital charges. (TYH-HZW)