China Merchants Bank Offers JCB-branded Hello Kitty Fan's Credit Card

The agreement with CMB, the largest credit card issuer with more than 10 million cards in China, is JCB's fourth card issuing alliance in the region. Based on years of successful experience with Hello Kitty design JCB cards in other Asian regions, JCB brought the proposal to CMB for issuing value added cards with the character, which is popular across a wide segment of Chinese consumers. CMB Hello Kitty Fan's Credit Card offered by CMB will accelerate further expansion of JCB as a global credit card brand in the Chinese payment market.

Kunio Yoshizawa, President and COO at JCB International, said, "We have been actively focusing on forming alliances to expand JCB card issuing in China, and are pleased and honored to be launching business with China Merchants Bank, holder of the largest share of the credit card numbers issued in China in this vast potential market. We anticipate the launch of JCB CMB Hello Kitty Fan's Credit Card will significantly increase the awareness of JCB brand in Chinese consumers."

JCB and JCB International have been expanding the acceptance network in China in co-operation with major local banks and financial institutions since 1982, right after the launch of JCB's overseas operation as a global payment brand. While in the past the purpose of expanding the JCB brand network in China was mainly to enhance acceptance for JCB cardmembers traveling from Japan and other Asian countries, the rapid growth in the Chinese economy has driven demand for international credit card issuing, making the country one of the most important markets for JCB issuing. In recent years JCB has been forming a number of new issuing partnerships to meet the diverse needs of Chinese consumers. In December 2006 Bank of China launched a co-branded JCB card with a major household appliance retail chain in China, and in February 2007 China Everbright Bank began offering co-branded JCB cards tied to a major fashion magazine publisher in the region.

The CMB Hello Kitty Fan's Credit Card is available in two designs: one appealing to more traditional Chinese tastes, and one featuring a more European look. In addition to the attractive design targeting Hello Kitty fans, there is a great selection of services for a diverse range of cardmembers.