Banks say they will turn the screw on defaulters

The China Banking Association has vowed to step up its fight against those who try to get out of paying money they owe banks.

Pan Guangwei, the association's executive vice-president, said that in its efforts to pursue such people and entities it has uncovered 120 cases and exposed more than 730 organizations.

She made the statement during the annual conference of national joint-stock commercial banks in Tianjin this week.

The association would strengthen information sharing and collaboration with administrative, judicial and law enforcement authorities to work on building a regime of penalties to impose on those illegitimately evading their debt liabilities, she said.

Pan said the association would first pass on the details of defaulted debtors to association member banks, and then have the information published on websites and in the news media.

It would then urge authorities to enforce legal rulings that had been made against defaulters and call on member banks to refuse credit to the debtors and bar them from opening accounts.