A number of major Chinese banks have stopped accepting payments from Russia in yuan

Payments in yuan from Russia have stopped going to several Chinese banks. Previously, transactions were successfully carried out in both rubles and yuan. The reason is the tightening of sanctions against the Russian Federation. Ping An Bank and Bank of Ningbo stopped accepting Chinese currency from Russia (they occupy the 13th and 15th places in capitalization, respectively), sources representing the business and the payment market told Izvestia. Also among such credit institutions of the People’s Republic of China are Guangfa Bank, Kunshan Rural Commercial Bank, Great Wall West China Bank, Shenzhen Rural Commercial Bank, Dongguan Rural Commercial Bank and China Zheshang Bank and a number of organizations with international capital participation. However, settlements between the countries will not stop — there are alternatives, experts said.

These Chinese financial organizations have indeed stopped accepting payments in yuan from Russia since about mid-January 2024, a source from the banking sector of the Russian Federation confirmed. He stressed that this problem is still relevant now.

The new restrictions on the part of the listed players are caused by concerns about the possible introduction of secondary sanctions and pressure from the United States, the source told Izvestia.

The refusal of a number of Chinese banks to accept payments in yuan from the Russian Federation will make it difficult for Russian companies to make settlements, according to Alexey Tarapovsky, founder of Anderida Financial Group. However, many Chinese players, including the large Bank of China, continue to make payments in rubles and yuan.

As the expert explained, there are now several ways to continue the calculations:

— through a Russian bank, payments from which are still accepted in China;

— by opening a branch of the company in China or another friendly country;

— through Hong Kong partners.

About 80% of Russian enterprises that regularly work with China have opened branches in friendly countries that are not subject to sanctions, Alexey Tarapovsky summed up.