China Merchants Bank and JD.com’s Fintech Vehicle Prepare to Launch Direct Online Lender

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A leading Chinese commercial bank and the fintech vehicle of JD.com are currently working together to launch a new online direct bank in China.

China Merchants Bank and JD Digits (京东数科) are in the midst of preparations for joint-venture Zhaodong Yinhang (京东数科) (full name – Shanghai Zhaodong Information Technology Co., Ltd. 上海招东信息科技有限公司) to commence operations, while waiting on the issuance of a banking license by Chinese authorities.

Zhaodong Yinhang is a joint-venture between CMB and JD Digits’ wholly-owned subsidiaries, making capital contributions of 56 million yuan and 24 million yuan respectively for 70% and 30% equity stakes.

CMB and JD Digits first commenced negotiations for establishment of an independent legal person direct bank back in May 2018.

Prior to that JD Digits originally planned to make a foray into the direct banking sector by teaming up with regional lender Huishang Bank.

Should Zhaodong Yinhang grab the green light from regulators, JD.com will join the ranks of other tech giants in China that have established direct online lenders, including Baidu with CITIC aiBank, Alibaba with MyBank and Tencent with WeBank.