In recent years, incidents such as frozen bank cards and reduced transfer limits have been on the rise, often becoming a hot topic of complaint among Chinese netizens. Since July this year, several banks from Zhejiang, Shandong, Shanxi, Hebei, Liaoning, Guizhou, and other regions have announced the reduction of non-counter channel transaction limits for some customers.
Recently, Ms. Wang complained on social media, saying, “Suddenly I found out that my transfer limit has been lowered! I can’t transfer a large amount to my mom anymore…” Many internet users have also shared similar experiences of having their limits reduced. The topic of “reduction of transaction limits” has become a trending topic recently.
Some netizens reported that their bank cards they had been using for 20 years had a limit of only 5,000 yuan; some found that the daily cumulative limit for non-counter payments was only 1,000 yuan when paying rent, which was not enough; others mentioned that the limit successfully curbed their spending impulses, with one saying, “Just the thought of having to go to the bank branch to raise the limit makes me not want to spend.”
Mr. Su from Shanghai had a similar experience. According to a report by Jiemian News, Mr. Su’s daily transfer limit on his salary card was lowered to 500 yuan without prior notice. When he called the bank branch, the staff explained that this was to ensure the safety of funds in the card and to prevent fraud.
Talking about the reasons for the reduction, many banks mentioned that it is to enhance the management of personal bank accounts, reduce the risk of customer funds loss, and to comply with the requirements of regulatory authorities for classified management of personal bank accounts.
According to Securities Daily, this year, several banks including Bank of China, Huaxia Bank, and Jiangsu Bank have adjusted the transaction limits for non-counter channel payments. The banks explained in their announcement that lowering the transaction limits for non-counter channels is to tackle telecom network fraud.
Just a month ago, a netizen posted a video saying that their mother went to a Jilin Bank branch in Changchun with her bank card, ID, and other documents to withdraw less than 100,000 yuan, only to be told that she needed approval from the police station to proceed. After the verification by the police station, the transfer was finally completed at the bank.
In a recent development, difficulties in withdrawing cash at branches of various banks in China have led to dissatisfaction among depositors, and even incidents of vandalism at bank branches.
In January this year, a woman in Pingdingshan City, Henan Province, shared on social media that she encountered difficulties while trying to withdraw 5,000 yuan from Zhongyuan Bank sent by her sister for Lunar New Year red envelopes. This incident went viral on Weibo.
According to Jiu Pai News, Ms. Wang involved in the incident mentioned that initially, the staff asked her to download an anti-fraud app, and she felt they were responsible, answering their questions. However, later, it went a bit too far as they asked where her sister worked, where she had worked before, and even demanded proof of their relationship by calling her sister directly and checking their chat records before allowing the withdrawal.
After involving the police, it took nearly 2 hours to finally withdraw the money.
According to Haibao News, a woman in Jiangxi posted on a social platform that she took 100,000 yuan in cash to a bank to deposit into a fixed-term account, only to be questioned by bank staff about the source of the money.
The woman expressed her frustration, wondering why the staff needed to know where the money came from. She questioned why she was being asked this now when she had never been questioned before while depositing cash. The staff responded that it was a bank regulation.