U.S. raises Mastercard, Citigroup China market access in talks: Official
U.S. Treasury officials are pressuring Beijing to grant greater market access to American financial firms like Mastercard and Citigroup. These discussions follow recent agreements between Presidents Trump and Xi to open China's financial sector.
Why it matters
The expansion of U.S. financial services into China is a key indicator of the ongoing geopolitical and economic negotiations between the two superpowers.
BANGKOK – U.S. officials pressed Beijing on market access issues for Mastercard Inc and Citigroup Inc during at least two bilateral meetings with Chinese counterparts in Bangkok this week, according to a U.S. Treasury official.
The Treasury delegation, led by Deputy Secretary Francis Brooke, held bilateral meetings with officials from the People's Bank of China and the finance ministry on the sidelines of the Group of 20 finance meetings and the IMF-World Bank annual gathering this week, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door meetings.
The talks included market access for U.S. companies, including Mastercard, Visa and Citigroup, the official said, adding that regulatory approval was part of the agreement reached during the meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping during the latter's state visit in Washington last month.
The sideline meetings in Bangkok continued discussions on implementing these deals, the official said.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in