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    Half Tones

    WeChat Bans More Than 1,000 Moneylending Chat Groups

    Mar 19, 2019

    China’s multipurpose messaging app WeChat has shut down over 1,000 chat groups using the platform to unlawfully disseminate financial lending information, according to a statement released by the company Monday.

    WeChat’s security department said it had closed groups in which users distributed financial lending information without the license to do so. The statement added that the crackdown is aimed at protecting users from financial fraud, as unlicensed peer-to-peer lenders were found to be operating on the platform despite an ongoing ban.

    Peer-to-peer — or P2P — lending companies have become popular in China for providing hassle-free loans, albeit at high rates of interest. But many smaller P2P lenders, facing issues such as diminishing funds and rising numbers of defaulters, have been forced to shut down since 2018. China is likely to have as few as 300 P2P lenders by the end of 2019, according to market research firm Yingcan Group. (Image: VCG)