Chinese credit card debt status
Some young Chinese consumers are starting to emulate the worst habits of U.S. consumers, 27-year-old Yuan Shuai in Beijing, whose credit card bets on his future have turned into overwhelming debts. In the last two years, he got seven cards from seven banks and wracked up $29,000 in debts.
A little before, the world economy is placing a bet on its future with China, but some Chinese are placing bets on their future with plastic like Yuan Shuai.
Yuan now has debt collectors from banks turning to his father, Yuan Yizhong, for bill payment. “The banks told me they could lend to him because he’s an adult,” his father says.
With no laws for bankruptcy protection in China, those threats can be real. “If you cannot pay it back you either have to go to parents or friends to pay back for you, or you got to jail,” said Yeongwen Chiang, a consumer expert.
chinese credit card
Credit card issuance is up 32 percent in China in the past year, according to China Market Research and the National Bureau of Statistics. Credit card debt is up more than 130 percent to $838 million. That still pales compared to U.S. credit card debt, but the quick rise have some observers alarmed.
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