Customers of rural Chinese banks whose withdrawals have been frozen will get some of their money back from Friday, regulators said after depositors clashed with authorities in a rare protest over the weekend.
China’s rural banking sector has been hit hard by Beijing’s efforts to stem a housing bubble and rising debt, in a financial crackdown that has had far-reaching implications for the world’s second-largest economy.
Four banks in Henan province have frozen all cash withdrawals since mid-April, leaving thousands of savers without money and sparking sporadic demonstrations.
In one of the largest rallies of its kind, hundreds gathered outside a branch of the People’s Bank of China in Henan’s capital Zhengzhou on Sunday, demanding their money. Demonstrators later complained of being attacked by unidentified men.
Some depositors can now get their money back, the Henan provincial banking and insurance regulator said in a statement late Monday.
Retail customers with deposits of up to 50,000 yuan ($7,442) will be repaid starting Friday, the regulator said, while repayment terms for others will be announced separately.
“Funds involved in illegal or criminal (activities) will temporarily not be returned,” the regulator said.
The announcement came a day after local police said they had arrested members of a “criminal gang” accused of taking over local banks and making illegal transfers through fictitious loans.
Protests are rare in tightly controlled China, where authorities enforce social stability at all costs and resistance is quickly suppressed.
But desperate citizens have occasionally managed to organize mass gatherings, usually when their targets are local governments or individual businesses.
Some of Sunday’s protesters accused officials of colluding with local banks to suppress rallies.
Provincial authorities were suspected last month of abusing the country’s mandatory Covid-19 health code to effectively bar protesters from public spaces.
Under Beijing’s strict zero-Covid strategy, the pass has become a ubiquitous part of life in China, and is required for access to most buildings, malls, public places, and also certain public transportation.
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