Foreign bank card firms fear tough China regulatory regime
Overseas companies may have to partner with local ones, say sources; such a move may breach 2012 WTO ruling
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Beijing
CHINA is considering imposing tough new conditions on overseas bank card providers such as Visa Inc and MasterCard Inc, in a potential setback to their plans to enter the country's US$7 trillion card payments market, according to people familiar with discussions.
Industry sources, lawyers and US business lobbies are worried that Chinese regulators will push foreign card firms to operate through a domestic consortium and may try to force them to partner with local companies and governments, reducing the amount of control they would have over their businesses and limiting their returns.
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