The number of regularly operating P2P platforms in China has fallen beneath the threshold of 600 to a new historic low, following efforts by Chinese authorities to clean up the sector.
The latest data from Wangdai Zhijia (网贷之家) indicates that as of the end of October 2019 the number of regularly operating P2P platforms in China had dropped to 572, for a decline of 29 compared to the end of September.
Beijing and Guangdong province are host to 132 and 109 such platforms respectively, while the number of P2P platforms left in Shanghai has dropped to 54.
In October the P2P online loan transaction volume was 57.027 billion yuan, for a decline of 12.716 billion compared to the preceding month.
As of the end of October the total loan balance of P2P online lending platforms in China was 589.269 billion yuan, for an on-month decline of 3.39%.
Rates have also continued to decline, with the October online lending average return standing at 9.49%, for its lowest level in a year.
Local governments around China have stepped up their efforts to clean up the P2P lending sector since the start of the second half, with province-level authorities including Ningxia, Yunnan and Shanghai releasing lists of defunct organisations.
On 16 October the Hunan province financial authority released a list of 24 online lending organisations whose P2P operations were non-compliant, while on 25 October the Hubei province government announced that 53 such organizations had seen their licenses revoked.
On 28 October Shenzhen’s internet finance risk rectification office released a list of 12 P2P lenders who had suspended operations.
