Citibank (China) Co yesterday launched its yuan debit cards - the third overseas bank to offer the service.

Citi is also offering mobile-phone payments associated with the cards, unlike its overseas rivals.

Citibank has teamed up with China UnionPay's subsidiary, China UnionPay Data Services Co, China's largest card third-party processor, to outsource its debit card transaction processing onshore.

Citibank debit card holders can use the card in more than one million merchants onshore and offshore via UnionPay.

The card can be used in UnionPay's more than 140,000 automatic teller machine onshore, 380,000 ATMs overseas plus Citi's own global channels.

The US-based bank teamed up with mobile-phone operators China Mobile and China Unicom for the mobile payment services.

Card holders can pay bills for water, electricity and gas, mobile phone bills and their purchases by linking their cell-phone number with bank accounts.

The services, first launched in Shanghai, will be expanded in other big cities.

Bank of East Asia was the first overseas bank to offer yuan-backed debit cards in May, while Standard Chartered Bank launched the service last week.

Including debit and credit cards, the mainland's total topped 1.58 billion by March 31, up 29.1 percent over the year, the People's Bank of China said.

Debit cards still dominate the mainland's market, accounting for 93.4 percent. Bank card transactions accounted for 25.6 percent of the country's total retail sales, up from last year's 21.9 percent.

Citibank has already joined Shanghai Pudong Development Bank to offer co-branded credit cards.

(Shanghai Daily July 31, 2008)