A view of Hong Kong File Photo: VCG

Starting on March 1,mk bank branches of institutions from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions (SARs) in the Chinese mainland can offer bank card business, the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA) said in a notice on Thursday. 

The move is an implementation of the second agreement concerning amendments to the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) Agreement on Trade in Services separately signed between the Chinese mainland and the two SARs, which will both take effect on March 1. 

It aims to further promote high-quality opening-up, enhance the financial support for constructing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), and deepen economic cooperation between the mainland and the SARs, per the notice. 

Mainland branches of banks from the two SARs will be allowed to conduct bank card business, including foreign currency and yuan bank cards for Chinese citizens overseas, and foreign currency bank card services for Chinese citizens in China, according to a separate NFRA press release responding to media questions. 

Public customers for the bank branches including enterprises, public institutions, and governmental organizations within and outside of China are also eligible to apply for foreign currency and yuan bank cards.   

The notice also clarifies relevant standards and procedures for implementation, while detailing requirements for the bank branches to prevent and resolve risks such as strengthening cybersecurity and data security to protect personal information.

The operation of mainland branches of banks from the SARs has established a channel for capital financing, especially for the development of the two SARs, by utilizing the yuan as well as promoting the construction of the GBA, Cong Yi, a professor at the Tianjin School of Administration, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Cong noted that the move will offer more choices and opportunities for mainland investors to invest in products from the two SARs, which will also provide strong support for the world's largest and most important offshore yuan business center to further explore its global growth potential.

The GBA has played a vital role in bolstering the country's financial opening-up. In December 2024, the first batch of 14 pilot securities companies launched a business operation related to the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Scheme. Residents from the Chinese mainland and the two SARs can purchase one another's financial products through securities companies in the GBA, while some fund products with relatively higher risks were added.

The CEPA, on the other hand, has delivered remarkable economic benefits. For instance, as of the end of 2024, the cumulative tariff concessions between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland may have exceeded 10.2 billion yuan ($1.4 billion), Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR John Lee Ka-chiu said on Tuesday. 

Global Times