U.S. presses China on Mastercard, Citigroup market access in bilateral Bangkok talks, official says
The U.S. raised market access issues for Mastercard and Citigroup in China during bilateral meetings in Bangkok this week, a U.S. Treasury official says.
TL;DR
- U.S. officials met with Chinese counterparts in Bangkok to discuss market access for Mastercard and Citigroup.
- The meetings were held on the sidelines of the G20 finance meetings and IMF-World Bank annual gathering.
- These talks are part of implementing agreements made between Presidents Trump and Xi on market access for U.S. financial firms.
- Visa Inc. previously received approval to begin preparing a wholly owned domestic card-clearing business.
- China has been gradually opening its financial sector to foreign firms since 2018, but limits cross-border capital flows and maintains dominance of state-backed players in payments.
- Mastercard currently operates in China through a joint venture, and pending approval would allow it to operate independently.
- Citigroup is seeking a wholly owned securities license for various businesses in the onshore market and applied in late 2021.
- The U.S.-China trade environment is seen as benign, with Beijing showing a willingness to continue opening up, which may boost investor confidence.