Indebted Chinese seek wisdom of credit card 'goddesses' as retail lending surges

Shanghai

IN a ballroom at the Vienna International Hotel in Shanghai, Mei Liangming was giving a lecture on the ins and outs of getting credit cards, rolling over debts with multiple cards, and cleaning up one's bad credit history.

"When you've nothing left to pledge as collateral and banks no longer wish to lend any money to you, your credit cards are your life raft," the financial consultant from Shenzhen Shandao Management Consulting told a 100-strong audience.