(19 September 2007 – China) Guandong Development Bank has issued one million new credit cards in the last six months.Michael Zink, president, Guandong Bank, said that the bank had issued five million credit cards by August 2007, up from four million credit cards as at February 2007.
This equates to a 25 percent increase over the six month period.
Chinese banks have focused on rapid expansion to cater for increased wealth of middle class consumers. Mr Zink said that Guandong bank has focused on the resulting boom in financial services, particularly in the credit card market for the growing middle class.
It is estimated that less than one percent of China’s population currently have credit cards, a figure which, according to Merchants Bank chief executive Ma Weihua, is expected to double by the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Guandong Bank, a China partner of Citigroup, is based in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou near Hong Kong. Last year, a Citigroup-led consortium bought control of Guangdong Bank in a US$3.1 billion deal.