The first dual-currency credit card was launched by the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB) in conjunction with US banking giant Citigroup. The picture shows Zhang Guangsheng (second from left), president of SPDB, and Charles Prince, CEO of Citigroup, at the inaugural ceremony.

Foreign Financiers Look to China

Overseas financial firms are keeping a close eye on China's credit card market, which by 2010 is expected to generate an annual income of at least US $3 billion. If restrictions on foreign financial firms were to be lifted, domestic financial organizations to update their outlook and data on consumer credit to become more available, this figure could exceed US $5 billion -- the same level as Taiwan. China's affluent social stratum is expanding, and by 2010 the number of households with an annual income in excess of US $6,500 is expected to reach 30 million.