Beijing calls for crackdown on ‘abused’ state-backed China UnionPay

The “rampant abuse” of China UnionPay’s card payment system has caught the eye of the Chinese government.

Now, Beijing is breathing down the neck of UnionPay, prompting the bank card organization to call out for the registration of the millions of its mobile point of service transaction devices, the South China Morning Post reported.

The news outlet quoted the company’s internal memo that announced a nationwide audit and warned that if the new controls were not followed, there will be sanctions from “relevant authorities”—allegedly China’s financial regulators and members of the Ministry of Public Security.

China Unionpay’s POS devices, or debit-card transaction terminals, are used by retailers to mask cash transactions under China’s strict currency control. In Macau, the devices were reportedly rigged so that international transactions will show up in the mainland’s network as domestic transactions, according to Post.