China UnionPay (CUP), a bankcard association headquartered in Shanghai, has issued more than 150,000 UnionPay credit cards in the Republic of Korea since the initial issuance in February.

The credit cards "zhong guo tong", literally "Around China", were jointly issued by China UnionPay (CUP) and ROK's leading credit card company BC Card Co., Ltd (BC).

CUP anticipated that the card issuance would hit 1 million by February next year.

A BC senior official expressed his willingness to promote the cards to more local residents and said the company was clearly planning to reach the goal of 1 million credit cards by next February.

From February to July, ROK citizens had spent up to 130 million yuan (about 18.97 million US dollars) by using the card in their own country, and nearly 200 million yuan in China, while Chinese citizens had spent over 140 million yuan in ROK, according to CUP.

"I find this card very useful during my stay in Beijing. I can use it to draw money on ATMs and consume through POS systems (Point of Sales)," said a young ROK lady, who had come to Beijing to watch the Olympic Games.

CUP President Xu Luode said the issuance of UnionPay was a result of deepened economic and trade ties between China and ROK.

Currently, nearly 1 million ROK nationals, including 600,000 students are living in China.

(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2008)