China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission: Standardize the management of regulated prices in the banking service market.
On January 24th, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission website published "Guiding Opinions on Regulating the Regulation Price Management of Banking Service Market". The Opinions put forward that banks should not use price means to carry out unfair competition; For financing business, fees shall not be charged for not providing substantive services; When setting the price range, it is not allowed to excessively expand the interval between the upper and lower limits and evade the price management requirements; When pricing based on external costs, fees significantly higher than the external service price standard shall not be charged; Do not charge fees repeatedly for service items, or reduce the quality or quantity of service on the grounds of price reduction.
The original text is as follows:
All banking insurance regulatory bureaus, policy banks, large banks, joint-stock banks, foreign-funded banks, direct-selling banks and banking associations:
In order to standardize the management of regulated prices in the banking service market, improve the quality and efficiency of serving the real economy, and improve the people’s financial consumption experience, this guidance is formulated in accordance with the Banking Supervision Law of the People’s Republic of China, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Commercial Bank Law, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Price Law, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Anti-Unfair Competition Law, and the Measures for the Administration of Service Prices of Commercial Banks.
I. General requirements
(A) the guiding ideology
Adhere to the guidance of the Supreme Leader Socialism with Chinese characteristics Thought in the new era, implement the new development concept, practice the people-centered development idea, standardize the banking service behavior, protect the legitimate rights and interests of financial consumers, and promote banks to better serve the real economy and the people.
(2) Basic principles
— — Market decision, government guidance. Based on laws and regulations, give full play to the regulatory role of the market mechanism and maintain market order by means of marketization and rule of law. Strengthen multi-party supervision, strengthen industry self-discipline, and promote banks to improve service price management.
— — Equal consultation to ensure quality. Financial service providers and demanders negotiate on an equal footing to prevent irregular pricing by taking advantage of market position differences and protect customers’ independent choice and fair trade rights. Support banks to independently determine the pricing strategy and price adjustment opportunity of market-regulated service items, reasonably calculate the service costs, and comprehensively consider factors such as resource investment, risk-taking and regional differences to ensure that service quality does not decrease and business operations are sustainable.
— — Open and transparent, dynamic adjustment. Banks should publicize service items and price standards through online and offline methods, disclose price information completely and accurately, and protect customers’ right to know. According to the macro-economic and financial situation, its own operating ability and other factors, adjust the service items and price levels.
— — Strengthen management and speed up transformation. Optimize the internal operation process, shorten the management and business chain, and form the endogenous power for banks to effectively carry out price management. Promote financial service innovation, increase digital transformation and technological empowerment, and improve operational efficiency.
(III) Main objectives
The bank’s market regulated price service items are set appropriately, the pricing is scientific and reasonable, the price management mechanism is more perfect, the quality and efficiency of financial services are further improved, and the service capacity is continuously enhanced, forming a market environment with fair price competition, effective management norms, high-quality and transparent services and sufficient rights and interests protection.
Second, standardize the pricing of service items
(4) Market-regulated pricing services of banks refer to services provided by banks with non-government guidance or non-government pricing. Services include payment and settlement, agency business, risk taking, financial transactions and management consulting, including payment and settlement, electronic banking, bank cards, wealth management, agency, custody, guarantee and commitment, trade finance, financial market transactions, management and consulting.
(5) The prices of service items subject to market-regulated prices shall be independently set by banks according to law and formed through market competition. Banks should set and adjust the price of market-regulated service items, which should reflect the matching of quality and price, cost and risk coverage, value creation and industry competitiveness. According to the different nature of service items, fixed amount pricing, proportional pricing, interval pricing, agreement pricing, pricing based on external costs or other methods are adopted separately or comprehensively.
(six) to adopt the proportional pricing method to formulate and adjust the price of service items, it is necessary to scientifically evaluate the relationship between the amount of services involved and the price of services, and comprehensively consider factors such as cost burden and economies of scale to determine the rate.
(VII) To adopt interval pricing method to formulate and adjust the price of service items, it is necessary to comprehensively consider the differences in customer group characteristics, transaction currency or amount, service channels, etc., scientifically determine pricing standards, reasonably control the price interval, and determine the appropriate upper and lower limits of the interval.
(eight) to adopt the agreement pricing method to formulate and adjust the price of service items, it is necessary to clarify the implementation reference standards for personalized services, persist in creating value for customers, clarify the service content, price composition and pricing considerations, standardize the service pricing calculation method, and keep corresponding records.
(nine) with the help of financial infrastructure or communication and information services, the external cost pricing method is adopted to formulate and adjust the price of service items, and the appropriate external purchase price and service price standard should be determined in full consultation with the basic service providers.
Third, establish and improve the pricing calibration mechanism
(ten) the bank should evaluate the rationality of the price standard of market-regulated service items, and select internal and external items for homogeneous comparison. According to the regulatory policy and business development needs, combined with the nature of the service to determine the frequency of price audit, regular assessment of service prices, in accordance with the provisions of the disclosure of adjustments. When evaluating the service price, we should fully consider the factors such as business model adjustment, management process optimization, technological progress and so on, and reflect them in the price level. Encourage a moderate reduction in fees for low-frequency and low-input services.
(eleven) the pricing of bank market-regulated service items should take service quality as the core, take into account market competition and customer acceptance, and avoid the actual execution price of services exceeding a reasonable level. For service items with fixed prices, the upper limit should be strictly the standard published in the service price catalogue, and the actual execution price should not be higher than the published price standard. For proportional pricing projects, except for specific types such as risk taking, in principle, it is necessary to set the upper limit of the execution price. For agreement pricing projects, it is necessary to clarify the internal implementation reference standards and establish an internal over-limit audit mechanism to prevent abuse of agreement to obtain improper benefits.
(twelve) banks shall not use price means to carry out unfair competition; For financing business, fees shall not be charged for not providing substantive services; When setting the price range, it is not allowed to excessively expand the interval between the upper and lower limits and evade the price management requirements; When pricing based on external costs, fees significantly higher than the external service price standard shall not be charged; Do not charge fees repeatedly for service items, or reduce the quality or quantity of service on the grounds of price reduction.
(thirteen) industry associations and clearing and settlement institutions should play an active role, strengthen positive guidance for services with extensive influence, and promote the long-term development of the market.
Fourth, support specific service areas
(14) Encourage banks to optimize basic banking services such as account management, deposit and withdrawal, payment and remittance for specific groups such as the elderly and the disabled, and give appropriate concessions in combination with their own business strategies. For service items such as account management and maintenance, it is encouraged to reduce or exempt them according to customer type, transaction scale and transaction frequency. Banks should ensure that customers are aware of the preferential measures for reducing and exempting service prices for specific groups, and protect financial consumers’ right to know.
(fifteen) encourage banks to implement differentiated pricing for small and micro enterprises, individual industrial and commercial households and other market entities, reasonably formulate and adjust the price of service items, divide customer groups according to their own business strategies, and give appropriate concessions.
(sixteen) to encourage banks to support the national people’s livelihood projects and other special funds to help protect the field, and reasonably determine the price of funds settlement and other services.
Five, improve the service outsourcing and service cooperation price management.
(XVII) In business cooperation with third-party institutions, banks can distinguish service outsourcing from service cooperation in combination with the independence of decision-making, the legal relationship of customers and the ownership of interests, and implement price management in accordance with these Guiding Opinions and relevant laws and regulations.
(eighteen) banks should establish and improve the management system of service outsourcing, reasonably determine the items and forms of outsourcing services, strengthen the management of service outsourcing procurement, and carefully select outsourcing service providers. It is necessary to specify the price terms in the outsourcing service agreement, and it is forbidden for outsourcing service providers to charge customers for services related to outsourcing services.
(nineteen) banks should establish a unified cooperative management system, formulate a directory of cooperative institutions, and adopt open bidding or other appropriate procurement methods for competitive service projects in principle. It is necessary to fully understand the service content and price standards provided by cooperative institutions such as Internet platforms to customers, stipulate the service price information disclosure requirements, the responsibilities and obligations of the three parties in dispute settlement, etc. in the cooperation agreement, and prohibit cooperative institutions from charging customers any fees in the name of banks. It is necessary to continuously evaluate the cooperation mode and terminate the cooperation of institutions that are inconsistent with the quality and price of service charges in a timely manner.
Six, strengthen the management of market regulated price pricing.
(20) The head office of a bank should implement scientific management of service prices, integrate price management into service scheme design, business strategy formulation, service quality and efficiency evaluation and other links, designate special departments to take the lead, coordinate all business departments and service units to implement the division of responsibilities by establishing an internal coordination mechanism, strengthen guidance and supervision on the implementation of service prices, and correct existing problems in time.
(21) Banks should improve the control function of business systems, realize automatic identification of customers who meet the conditions of preferential reduction and exemption of service prices, effectively control service items and execution prices, and reduce operational errors and human influence through parameter setting.
(twenty-two) banks should follow the principle of appropriateness and matching. Recommend appropriate service items according to the actual needs of customers. For a service project with a certain period or service period, it is necessary to stipulate terms such as service content, charging rules and liability for breach of contract in the business contract or service agreement with the customer, and deal with the situation that the service actually does not occur or is terminated in advance according to the principle of matching the service price with the actual content. Regularly carry out service inspection and retrospective analysis, and confirm and refund the expenses in time.
(twenty-three) the market adjusted price shall be formulated and adjusted by the head office of the bank. Branches can determine the specific service price in combination with local business strategies and market competition within the price fluctuation range and authorization range determined by the Head Office. If there are obvious regional differences and differentiated service prices need to be implemented, the branches shall apply and report to the head office for approval before publicity and implementation.
(twenty-four) banks should set clear internal service price relief authority and approval process, and strengthen the management of service price behavior of branches by standardizing service processes, optimizing system control functions and improving assessment incentives.
(twenty-five) banks should publicize service items and prices through public channels. Signs or instructions should be clear and identifiable, and the display content should be simple and intuitive, which is easy to query in business premises and other ways. It can be publicized by combining the service price catalogue with the announcement. In principle, long-term preferential measures with universality should be included in the service price catalogue. It is necessary to fully prompt the applicable object, scope, method and effective period of the preferential service price policy. Clarify the specific items and price standards of the service price package. In the transaction interface, business contract or service agreement, list service items, price standards, charging and collection methods, etc.
(twenty-six) the internal audit department of the bank should include the service price management and implementation in the audit scope to prevent the violation of service price management requirements, compulsory acceptance of services, improper interest transfer and other situations that harm the legitimate rights and interests of financial consumers. Those suspected of violating discipline shall be handed over to the discipline inspection and supervision department.
Seven, strengthen the implementation of security.
(twenty-seven) banks should unify their thinking from top to bottom, coordinate factors such as business development, economic benefits and social responsibilities, and determine the task implementation department. Strengthen internal communication and coordination, timely revise the management system, promote the improvement of service price management, and ensure that it is in place.
(twenty-eight) banks should attach great importance to the management of service prices, organize systematic training for the whole bank, carefully evaluate the implementation, and effectively solve the problems encountered in the implementation.
(twenty-nine) banks should do a good job of customer explanation through online and offline methods according to the characteristics of different customers, and create a good environment conducive to improving the price management of banking services.
(30) Policy banks, commercial banks, rural small and medium-sized banking institutions, consumer finance companies, auto finance companies, financial leasing companies and currency brokerage companies established with the approval of China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and its dispatched offices according to law shall be governed by these Guiding Opinions, and branches of foreign banks shall refer to them. China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and its dispatched offices shall, in accordance with the division of responsibilities, strengthen the continuous supervision of the service price behavior of the regulated institutions.
This guidance shall come into force as of May 1, 2022.
China China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.
January 15, 2022
(This copy is sent to the Banking Insurance Supervision Branch and the local corporate banking financial institutions)



















