The People's Bank of China has disclosed the latest batch of payment licence renewal outcomes, revealing that two payment institutions under listed companies have had their reviews suspended, while one institution has been denied renewal. This marks the first denial case since the central bank initiated the long-term licence renewal process for payment firms in July this year, according to the renewal (re-issuance) public notice for non-bank payment institution Payment Business Licences released on August 28.

The public information shows that seven institutions, including Shanghai Richfu Payment Services Co., Ltd., Shanghai Anxin Hui Payment Co., Ltd., and Yitong Jinfu Payment Co., Ltd., have been granted long-term licences. Due to circumstances stipulated in Article 24 of the People's Bank of China Administrative Licensing Implementation Measures, the central bank has decided to suspend the review of the renewal application submitted by Lianlian Yintong Electronic Payment Co., Ltd. (hereafter referred to as Lianlian Yintong).

Situated in Hangzhou High-tech Zone and established in 2003 with a registered capital of 325 million yuan, Lianlian Yintong is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Lianlian Digital. The company originally obtained its payment business licence in August 2011, covering internet payment and mobile phone payment services nationwide, and successfully renewed it in August 2016. Since then, it has received approvals to conduct cross-border RMB settlement for e-commerce, cross-border foreign exchange payment services, and to operate as a fund sales payment and settlement institution.

In response to the suspended review, Lianlian Digital issued an announcement later that evening, stating that under Article 24(5) of the Administrative Licensing Implementation Measures, Lianlian Yintong had applied to the People's Bank of China Zhejiang Provincial Branch for a temporary suspension of the review process for exchanging its payment licence for a long-term one. The company emphasized that the suspension is a procedural right explicitly granted to payment institutions under the Measures. During the suspension period, all payment businesses of the group will continue normal operations, and customer funds and services remain unaffected. The group's overall business and financial condition will not suffer significant adverse effects from this suspension. Lianlian Digital also noted it will promptly apply to resume the review process for obtaining the long-term licence.

Lianlian Digital is a leading player in the domestic cross-border payment sector. Founded in 2009 and listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2024, its shares closed at HK$3.765 per share on August 28, giving it a total market capitalization of HK$4.1 billion.

On the same day, the renewal review for Lianlian Youzhi Payment Co., Ltd. (hereafter Lianlian Youzhi) was also suspended. Lianlian Youzhi is a wholly-owned third-tier subsidiary of A-share listed company Hailian Jinhui. Established in 2011, it was among the first batch of third-party payment institutions granted licences by the People's Bank of China. Its credentials include national bank card acquiring, internet payment, mobile phone payment licences, fund sales payment settlement business permits, cross-border RMB payment permits, and cross-border foreign exchange payment qualifications.

Hailian Jinhui released an announcement that evening confirming that Lianlian Youzhi is currently in the suspended review stage, during which its business can operate normally. In 2025 and the first half of 2026, Lianlian Youzhi's operating revenue accounted for 12.96% and 13.14% of the company's total revenue, respectively, while its net profit accounted for -1.46% and -6.54% of the company's net profit. These figures indicate the suspension will not affect the stable development of the company's main business. Hailian Jinhui said it will closely communicate with regulatory authorities regarding the matters involved in the suspension and will immediately initiate the renewal process once the suspension circumstances are resolved.

Notably, in April 2024, Hailian Jinhui announced plans to transfer 100% equity of Lianlian Youzhi to Douyin Pay's affiliated entity Tianjin Tongrong at a benchmark consideration of approximately 750 million yuan. According to the latest announcement, the equity transfer still requires approval from the People's Bank of China, and the agreement is currently in the process of execution. If regulatory approval is not obtained or other adverse factors emerge, the transaction may not be completed smoothly. Hailian Jinhui's main businesses include fintech and intelligent manufacturing sectors. Its shares closed at 6.25 yuan per share on August 28, with a total market value of approximately 7.3 billion yuan.

Elsewhere, due to circumstances outlined in Article 47 of the Administrative Licensing Implementation Measures, the central bank has decided not to renew the licence for Chengdu Mobao Network Technology Co., Ltd. (hereafter Mobao Pay). This makes Mobao Pay the first payment institution to receive a non-renewal decision since the central bank launched the long-term licence exchange work in July 2025. The original validity of Mobao Pay's payment business licence extended until August 28, 2026. In July this year, the company was fined over 29 million yuan by regulators for violations related to account management, clearing management, and merchant management rules. Additionally, its applications for changes to registered capital, major shareholders, actual controllers, and company name were not approved by the central bank.

Wang Pengbo, chief financial industry analyst at Botong Consulting, noted that Mobao Pay has long faced weaknesses in business quality and prominent internal governance shortcomings, with repeated regulatory penalties and insufficient implementation of rectification measures. "This non-renewal was in line with market expectations," he said. "The renewal process sends a clear signal that a payment licence is not a lifetime protection. If compliance capabilities continue to lag, business shrinks persistently, internal governance loopholes recur, and rectification requirements are not met, licences will still be revoked."

The industry has seen heightened consolidation this year. As of August 28, six institutions, including Shanghai Dazhong Transportation Commerce Co., Ltd., Shengya Yunding Payment Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Shanglianxin Electronic Payment Services Co., Ltd., have had their licences revoked, bringing the total number of revoked institutions to 114, leaving only 157 institutions operating normally. Tian Lihui, a finance professor at Nankai University, commented that non-bank payment institutions currently face multiple challenges, including prominent compliance risks, severe business distortion, and imbalanced industry structure. For sustainable and healthy development, they should build a "proactive compliance" system and use technology to drive forward-looking risk management. They should also return to the essence of payment, deepening services in areas like industrial payment and cross-border services, and explore "payment + digitalization" value-added services to move away from pure channel dependence.

Wang Pengbo added that non-bank payment institutions must, on one hand, maintain compliance bottom lines and strengthen foundational capabilities such as internal controls and anti-money laundering. On the other hand, they need to identify their own resource advantages and explore genuinely viable business opportunities in areas like industrial digitalization and cross-border payments.