Yesterday I tried to take out a personal consumption loan in China. Getting 300k RMB cash at 3% is a great deal, especially as the U.S. dollar is weakening. As somewhat expected, I was denied from applying for being a foreigner. My permanent resident “green card” did not help - they won’t offer that type of loan to any foreigner regardless of visa or circumstances. My wife (Chinese) took out the loan instead but, for better or worse, I am a kind of “it is the principle that matters” type of guy. There is no concept of fair lending here, and while that is their choice, I have every right to politely disagree.
I went to the regulator (国家金融监督管理总局上海监管局) and opened a complaint. The security guard was a bit baffled to see a foreigner walking up and asking to open a complaint in person, but I managed to explain the issue in Chinese. To their credit, they were incredibly nice and happy to help open the complaint against the bank (probably looks good on their reports to show they helped a foreigner). The bank called back later that night and, again, explained they don’t offer it to foreigners because of their policy.
Just another interesting day living in China. I know some may consider this type of behavior petty and “not a polite guest.” Perhaps. I’ve been here seven years and know it won’t be forever. It’s not all bad experiences, and in fact many parts are quite good. These monetary systems are always a rigged game, and this type of institutional discrimination or bias is likely inherent to every country in their unique ways.
第二章 受理与调查
第十二条 个人贷款申请应具备以下条件：
（一）借款人为具有完全民事行为能力的中华人民共和国公民或符合国家有关规定的境外自然人；
