U.S. Treasury pressed China on Mastercard and Citigroup market access in Bangkok, official says

U.S. officials pressed Beijing on market access for Mastercard and Citigroup in at least two bilateral meetings in Bangkok this week, according to a U.S. Treasury official who described the closed-door sessions on condition of anonymity.

The Treasury delegation, led by Deputy Secretary Francis Brooke, met officials from the People's Bank of China and China's finance ministry. The talks took place on the sidelines of the Group of 20 finance meetings and the IMF-World Bank annual gathering.

Visa was also on the agenda, the official said.

The PBOC and the Chinese embassies in Singapore and Thailand did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Citigroup and Mastercard declined to comment. The U.S. Treasury press office and Visa did not immediately respond.

What Washington says was agreed

The official said regulatory approval for U.S. financial firms was part of the agreement reached when Donald Trump met Xi Jinping during Xi's state visit to Washington last month. The Bangkok meetings, the official said, continued talks on carrying out those deals.

That is Washington's account. Beijing has not publicly laid out what it committed to on financial licensing.

Where each company stands

China approved Visa on Oct. 13 to begin preparing a wholly owned domestic card-clearing business. The PBOC has said Visa has up to a year to prepare before it applies for an operating license. Approval to prepare is not a license to operate.

Mastercard already handles yuan card payments in China through a local joint venture with NetsUnion Clearing Corp., which began operating in 2024. A pending approval would let it operate as an independent entity, a person familiar with the matter said.

Citigroup is pursuing a wholly owned securities license covering A-share brokerage, underwriting, research and principal trading onshore, according to two people familiar with the industry. Citi applied in late 2021. One of those people said the bank has hired several dozen staff for its China unit and plans to grow its securities team to about 100.

Reuters reported last month that approval for Citi could come soon. No approval has been announced.

The backdrop

China has opened much of its financial sector to foreign firms since 2018, lifting foreign ownership caps in securities, futures and fund management. It still restricts cross-border capital flows. State-backed domestic players remain dominant in payments.

Eurasia Group China director Dan Wang said: "The move suggests the US-China trade environment remains benign, and Beijing is keen to keep up the momentum."

Trump and Xi are expected to meet in person for the third time this year in Shenzhen at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November.

Other governments make the same complaint

Washington is not the only capital pressing Beijing on access. In Bangkok this week, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told an Atlantic Council session that non-tariff barriers are "the biggest hurdle" in India-China trade. She said India had sought better access for generic medicines, bovine meat, vegetables and other perishables for nearly a decade with little progress.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning responded Friday, Oct. 16. "China never aims for trade surplus," she said, adding that Beijing is "ready to work with India to address each other's economic and trade concerns in a balanced way." She referred specific questions to the relevant Chinese authorities.

The pattern is familiar. Foreign governments press for access, Beijing says it is willing to talk, and approvals arrive in stages.

What to watch

The measurable steps are specific. Visa's one-year preparation window runs toward an operating-license application. Mastercard's application to run independently is pending. Citi's license request has been pending since late 2021.

The Shenzhen APEC meeting in November is the next scheduled point where Trump and Xi could point to concrete results. No date has been given for decisions on Mastercard or Citigroup.