Recently, a bank customer manager in mainland China posted a video on social media, showing her difficult journeys in the harsh winter to find businesses and individuals in need of loans. A bank employee in Nanjing revealed more details to Epoch Times.
The customer manager of a bank in Nanjing filmed a video, narrating her challenging experiences of braving the bone-chilling cold to seek out businesses and individuals looking for loans in the marketplace.
She mentioned in the video that she was facing a dilemma at work; either running in the market outside, or being stuck at home with a pile of forms to fill out. “It’s difficult, stuck in between. Moreover, I’ve already explored all the major markets nearby.”
She noted, “There are too few people who need loans. Are there still businesses in need of loans? Over the past two years, many businesses have closed down due to the impact of masks and the economic environment.”
“Just when we are ready to disburse loans, we are called for a meeting. I want to disburse loans too, but where are the people, where are the businesses?”
She further expressed that businesses are struggling, banks are struggling, and bank personnel are in even more difficulty, especially customer managers. “Nowadays, the assessment criteria for banks have become more and more intricate. Besides business conditions, there are political conditions and various miscellaneous matters that need to be evaluated.”
Her video resonated with many colleagues in the industry. A customer service manager in Chongqing complained online, “Facing rejection, disdain, harassment, distributing flyers door-to-door, making endless sales calls, constantly dealing with bad debts, many customer managers want to switch to teller positions.”
A customer service manager in Luoyang, Henan, said online, “There are too many small and micro-enterprises that have not been able to repay debts in the past two years. Various delays and issues arise, and when you don’t act, you are called in for discussions; when you act, you are blamed and penalized. Many customers that were once considered high-quality are struggling to make ends meet in the past two years.”
A family member of a bank employee in Fujian commented online, “My husband works at a bank, and there are many aspects of the system and work that I don’t understand and don’t agree with. While top management earns hefty salaries, the subordinates are overworked, focused only on outcomes without considering the process, quick to penalize. The already low salaries are now even in the negative for some employees; working at a bank is quite disgusting.”
Mr. Zhao works in a management role at one of the four major state-owned banks in China. He explained to Epoch Times that bank employees are primarily concerned about not being able to generate business, failing to meet targets. “I’ve heard colleagues who still work as customer managers say that due to the poor economic situation, there are limited high-quality projects available. Those who used to handle big projects now have to work on general projects, as there is no other way to sustain themselves.”
“With the overall economic downturn, businesses lack the demand for financing to expand their operations, hence the lack of loan demand. Individuals don’t want consumer loans because they have little money in their pockets, and they are hesitant to invest in real estate due to the sluggish market,” he added.
He also highlighted that banks are currently struggling with loan disbursement. Although many ordinary citizens aren’t spending and are relying on savings, “it’s not a good sign for banks because their main revenue comes from interest differentials. If individuals have too many deposits and fewer loans, it’s actually a loss for the bank. Corporate deposits are also significantly affected because if companies are not profitable, they tend to have fewer savings.”
A report by China’s “First Financial” revealed that data from 42 listed banks in China showed a reduction of approximately 38,000 employees since the beginning of the year. Among these 42 banks, 30 saw a negative growth in average monthly salaries compared to the previous year, with pay cuts and layoffs becoming a prevailing trend in the banking industry. Previously, the average monthly salary in the banking sector started at 30,000 RMB, but now it’s less than 10,000 RMB, with the increase in bad debts and the continuous shrinking of net interest margins putting pressure on banks.
Mr. Zhao mentioned that their bank had also implemented pay cuts. “Initially, the headquarters reduced salaries, and recently, our provincial branch also cut salaries by 10%. We were notified of the pay cuts this month (November), and we have to give back more than 10% of our annual salaries; I heard that the leaders are taking even more substantial cuts.”
He explained that their bank has four levels – branch, division, provincial branch, and headquarters – and it’s essential to protect the lower levels. “They are the ones creating value, but due to the challenging economic situation with poor loan operations, their incentives are likely reduced as well.”
“The cuts mainly focus on performance bonuses, with little change in basic salaries. Banks primarily emphasize performance, with minimal emphasis on basic salaries. Both provincial branches and the headquarters are based on average performance, while customer managers at the grassroots level are rewarded based on workload,” he explained. “I’m not in a customer manager position, I work in administrative management, so I receive an average performance bonus, leveling out my income.”
He believes that the four major state-owned banks are really running low on funds, with the market environment as described earlier. However, there is still competition among the various banks, with some performing relatively better than others. At present, a fierce competition is ongoing within the shrinking pool of resources.
Another employee from Jiaxing Industrial Bank confirmed to Epoch Times that they started implementing pay cuts in September this year, aiming to reduce costs and enhance efficiency, subsequently resulting in many people quitting their jobs.
“Aren’t any industries making money these days?” a netizen from Inner Mongolia posted online on November 29th. “I keep seeing posts about various ‘harsh winters’ faced by hospitals, banks, teachers, the entertainment industry, TV stations, civil servants, lawyers…”
Beijing intellectual Mr. Wang, concerned about livelihoods, explained to Epoch Times, “Most people have completely lost confidence in China’s economy,” citing the reckless money printing, rapid inflation, corruption, wealth transfers, and lavish spending on diplomacy by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) elites, which have pushed Chinese society toward an economic collapse.
“As the CCP’s money-hoarding machine, China’s banks have also started to suffer in the midst of the general economic collapse,” he added. “With foreign capital withdrawals and a wave of business closures, the CCP elites with no demand for loans are using banks to exploit, while countless small and micro-enterprises and individuals in need of loans cannot secure financial assistance due to being financially drained and creditworthiness damaged by a collapsing market.”
He emphasized that if even banks are struggling to survive, it’s even harder for countless ordinary citizens and small business owners who have been barely getting by. “China is currently in the midst of an economic collapse, and a political collapse might not be far behind.”
A previous report by Epoch Times highlighted the emergence of five ominous signs in China’s financial industry. The article mentioned that Chinese banks are facing a crisis in savings and lending, with over one-third of assets invested in real estate developers and local governments, 40% marked as non-performing loans. Coupled with the significant shrinkage of the real estate market in mainland China and Hong Kong by up to 50%, this could lead to Chinese banks facing insolvency on a massive scale.