"Phantom Charges" Targeting the Elderly? Kuaiqian, Tonglian and Other Payment Institutions Frequently Face Complaints

"Funds in bank cards are inexplicably deducted" and "I don't know when the service was activated," are complaints that consumers have frequently reported in recent years. Attention has gradually shifted from the deduction platforms or banks to the important link in the flow of funds—payment institutions. In this process, payment institutions often position themselves as third-party channels, emphasizing business compliance and legality. The "Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Non-Bank Payment Institutions" and "Measures for the Classification and Rating Management of Non-Bank Payment Institutions" and other laws and regulations are raising higher requirements for payment institutions in terms of "corporate governance," "business norms," and "user rights protection." Complaints about "membership fees" and "service fees" still exist Payment institutions are frequently complained about for helping online lending and loan assistance platforms collect "membership fees" and "service fees," forming "head-cutting interest." With the Internet Finance Association conducting self-inspection and correction in 2024, and the gradual implementation of the "Notice on Strengthening the Management of Internet Loan Assistance Business by Commercial Banks to Improve Financial Service Quality and Efficiency" (hereinafter referred to as the "New Loan Assistance Regulations") in October 2025, related behaviors have rapidly decreased, but there are still occasional occurrences. Since the beginning of this year, on the Consumer Protection platform, multiple borrowers have complained about platforms such as Xiaoshe Wallet, Duodianhua, and Tianxin Youpin, claiming they encountered "head-cutting interest" in the form of "service fees," with the deduction channel being Zhejiang Shangmeng Payment Co., Ltd.'s Tongtong Pay. (The above image is taken from the Consumer Protection platform) For example, on March 19, a borrower claimed that they borrowed 6,000 yuan from Tianxin Youpin, with the "lending" unit (actually the payment channel) being Zhejiang Shangmeng Payment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Shangmeng Payment"), which deducted 2,040 yuan immediately after the funds were received, resulting in an actual amount of 3,960 yuan. On January 24, someone stated that they borrowed from "Duodianhua," and Tongtong Pay charged high fees under the name of "matching service fees," suspected of head-cutting interest and disguised usury. In response, Shangmeng Payment stated to the Southern Metropolis Daily that Shangmeng Payment is a third-party payment institution holding a payment business license issued by the People's Bank of China, strictly adhering to national laws, regulations, and regulatory requirements, and conducting business in compliance with the law within the scope of the payment license, providing payment services only to merchants with legal and compliant qualifications The company stated that it only acts as a payment service provider, does not intervene in the actual business activities of merchants, and does not participate in the resolution of transaction disputes between merchants and customers. However, it has ensured that communication channels such as the 400 customer service hotline, APP, and WeChat official account are smooth, actively handling consumer inquiries and complaints, and coordinating and urging merchants to properly resolve user demands in the shortest time possible. For merchants that cannot properly handle complaints, it will take strict control measures in accordance with internal risk management requirements to effectively protect consumers' legal rights. In February of this year, Fosun International (00656.SZ) announced that it would increase its capital in its subsidiary, Zhejiang Shangmeng Technology Co., Ltd., by 105 million yuan, resulting in a shareholding ratio of 51.08%. The aforementioned lending platforms are mostly small in strength, and some even have predatory lending practices like "monthly financing" and "high-interest platforms." These platforms have short loan cycles and high interest rates, mainly targeting multi-borrowers who "borrow new to repay old." In early 2025, Duodianhua was also named by the National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center due to vulnerabilities in its privacy policy and inadequate personal information protection. A previous article by Southern Metropolis Daily titled "Complaints about 'Automatic Deductions' on Lending Platforms like Maibei, All Partners are Baofu Payment" mentioned that an APP named "Maibei" faced numerous complaints or negative reviews on Consumer Protection, Black Cat, and mobile application stores, with the core issue pointing to "automatic deductions." According to multiple user descriptions, they only registered and bound their cards (or registered to apply for a credit limit) on the "Maibei" platform, without purchasing any payment content, yet were generated a bill of 1968 yuan, and were basically required to repay in 6 installments, i.e., 328 yuan per installment. Moreover, repayments were all made through automatic deductions from bank cards, and many users only realized they had incurred debt when they received the bill information. According to Qimai data, the platform operator is Jiangxi Qianxiangyun Network Technology Co., Ltd., and the payment channel is Baofu Payment Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as"Baofu Payment"). Baofu Payment emphasized that the complaint resolution rate on the Black Cat complaint platform reached 96.63%, which is better than the overall level of the payment industry, and stated that it will continue to strive to provide quality products and services to customers, while continuously monitoring the operational status of partner merchants. If any risks are found with merchants, timely risk control measures will be taken. "Phantom Deductions" Complaints Quietly Increasing Against the backdrop of the standardized development of the online lending and assistance industry, complaints related to "unauthorized deductions" have concentrated on small-scale, easily disguised black and gray platforms. For the payment industry, a new type of complaint is rapidly increasing—phantom deductions. Unlike forgetting to turn off auto-renewal for a subscription, "phantom deductions" refer to situations where users are charged for a service they were unaware of or were unprepared for. Moreover, due to unfamiliarity with new online phenomena and practices, elderly individuals often fall victim to this In February 2026, a user posted on Xiaohongshu, stating that their grandmother suddenly encountered a payment page while using her phone, which completed an automatic payment. The deduction was made by "Jiangxi Yekai Network Information Service Co., Ltd.", and the acquiring institution was Tonglian Payment. The user later complained through channels such as 12315 to retrieve the funds. The user indicated that their grandmother did not even have the option for password-free payments enabled. Additionally, on platforms like Xiaohongshu, Consumer Protection, and Black Cat Complaints, using keywords such as "Tonglian Payment", "Kuaiqian", and "Zhongjin Payment", the search results on Black Cat Complaints were approximately 23,000, 21,000, and 6,700 respectively. Browsing the top 100 complaint details, many were related to unauthorized deductions. (The above image is from the Black Cat Complaints platform) On March 16, a user reported that while scanning a code to pay for parking, a prompt appeared asking to bind a bank account, and then 49.9 yuan was deducted, with the payment institution being Kuaiqian. On Xiaohongshu, a user mentioned that for two consecutive months, they were charged 39.99 yuan at dawn by Nanjing Xinyuan Network Technology Co., Ltd., with the payment institution being Kuaiqian. A recent article on Guangming.com also reported that Mr. Yang, 74 years old, had his bank card charged 69 yuan and 199 yuan consecutively on March 10 and 11 at dawn, with the payment institution being Kuaiqian. Kuaiqian was originally a payment platform under Wanda, and Tianyancha shows that its current actual controller has changed to Ke Liming, the actual controller of China Ruyi (00136.HK). (The above image is from the Consumer Protection platform) On March 19, on the Consumer Protection platform, a user claimed that they accidentally clicked on an advertisement and unknowingly purchased an insurance service, with a monthly deduction of 133 yuan, and the payment channel was Zhongjin Payment. After calling customer service, only a robot answered, and when "cancellation of insurance" was mentioned, the call was disconnected. A professional in the payment industry explained that legitimate payment institutions strictly adhere to laws and regulations such as the "Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Non-Bank Payment Institutions" and the "Consumer Rights Protection Law," always prioritizing consumer rights protection. During transactions, they utilize advanced technology and a strict risk control system to monitor and manage transactions in real-time, preventing fraudulent transactions and unauthorized deductions. They emphasized that payment institutions, as providers of merchant payment settlement services, primarily transfer funds based on customer instructions and do not participate in the actual operation of merchants. However, in the event of a transaction dispute between the two parties, payment institutions will arrange professionals to analyze the complaint transaction situation and coordinate both parties to properly handle the dispute, ensuring that consumer rights are effectively protected (The above image is taken from the Black Cat Complaint Platform) The reporter from Southern Metropolis Daily noticed that the phone number "020-22510799" belongs to Shouxin Insurance Agency (Guangdong) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Shouxin Insurance"). From various platforms, it was found that on February 8, users reported that they were charged continuously by Shouxin Insurance without making any consumption actions or signing any agreements, with the payment channel being Easy Payment. (The above image is taken from the "Luna Run" mini-game) Referring to user feedback, the reporter tested a mini-game called "Luna Run" in a certain software. In the first few levels, there were no abnormalities, and after passing a level, a "Level Reward" option would pop up, and clicking "Continue" would suffice. However, after about the ninth level, the pop-up suddenly changed to "Special Offer Package" (game skins, props, etc.). The reporter instinctively clicked the button, but since they rarely used the software and had not enabled password-free payment, no charge was made. In summary, "ghost charges" often occur in scenarios where user attention is distracted, such as parking code discounts, short video advertisements, and mini-game pop-ups, where the payment page information is vague, the charge amounts are generally not high, and they may occur in the early morning, making it difficult for users to notice. Industry insiders added that in the cooperation between a small number of payment institutions and platforms, payment institutions charge higher service fees for such "ghost charge" projects. To reduce risks, these payment institutions will list contact phone numbers in the bank charge details, and as long as the complainant calls, the improperly deducted fees will be quickly refunded to avoid escalating conflicts. Industry regulation is strengthening, " business norms " are a top priority On one hand, complaints about unauthorized deductions and ghost charges continue to exist; on the other hand, payment institutions often describe themselves as "channels," attributing the main problems to partner merchants and emphasizing their own business legality and compliance. Based on this, relevant laws and regulations have imposed various requirements on payment institutions. (The above image is taken from the official website of the People's Bank of China) The "Administrative Measures for the Classification and Rating of Non-Bank Payment Institutions," which will take effect on February 1, 2026, provides seven major standards for the classification and rating of payment institutions. From the scoring, it can be seen that "business norms" correspond to 25 points, placing it at the highest position, while user rights protection and corporate governance each correspond to 10 points, with a total score of 45 for the three items ** Regarding the regulatory requirements for the classification and rating materials of payment institutions, the People's Bank of China stated that payment institutions should conduct self-assessments based on the classification and rating scoring standards and prepare self-assessment reports. The self-assessment report must describe the scoring basis according to the scoring standards item by item and provide corresponding explanatory materials. According to a report by Southern Metropolis Daily, the "Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Non-Bank Payment Institutions," which will take effect on May 1, 2024, emphasizes that non-bank payment institutions should formulate agreement terms based on the principle of fairness and prominently publicize them at their business premises, official websites, mobile internet applications, etc. At the same time, for terms in the payment service agreement that may affect users' consent to use the payment service, non-bank payment institutions should reasonably remind users to pay attention and explain these terms at the user's request. In addition, non-bank payment institutions should independently complete due diligence on special merchants, sign payment service agreements, and conduct ongoing risk monitoring and other business activities. Non-bank payment institutions must not provide services to merchants that are not legally established or are engaged in illegal business activities. Non-bank payment institutions should promptly and properly handle disputes with users, fulfill their primary responsibility for complaint handling, and effectively protect users' legitimate rights and interests. Article 10 of the "Administrative Measures for Network Payment Business of Non-Bank Payment Institutions" stipulates that when a payment institution sends payment instructions to the customer's bank and deducts funds from the customer's bank account, the payment institution must independently verify the customer's identity in advance or at the time of the first transaction and obtain the agreement authorization from both the customer and the bank, agreeing to initiate payment instructions to deduct funds from the customer's bank account. Article 18 stipulates that payment institutions should fully remind customers of the potential risks of network payment services, timely disclose new criminal methods used by illegal actors, provide necessary security education to customers, and issue risk warnings for high-risk businesses before and during operations. When providing network payment services for financial products purchased by customers from partner institutions, payment institutions should ensure that the partner institutions have obtained the corresponding business qualifications and are legally conducting business, and display information about the partner institutions and product information to customers at the time of the first purchase, fully reminding them of relevant responsibilities, rights, obligations, and potential risks, and assisting customers in completing the signing of agreements with partner institutions. Article 27 stipulates that payment institutions should take effective measures to ensure that customers can confirm transaction information such as the names and account numbers of payers and payees, transaction amounts, etc., before executing payment instructions, and promptly notify customers of the results after the payment instructions are completed. (The above image is taken from the official website of the Beijing Branch of the People's Bank of China) Since 2026, at least more than ten payment institutions, including KaiLianTong Payment, Yinsheng Payment, KuaiFuTong Payment, HuiFu Payment, and SuiXingFu, have been penalized by the People's Bank of China and its affiliated institutions. Among them, KaiLianTong Payment was fined a total of 38.4349 million yuan for violations such as "failing to ensure that transaction information is true, complete, and traceable," "not strictly implementing risk monitoring requirements," and "not strictly implementing the verification requirements for the willingness of the legal representative to open an account." Written by: Nandu N Video Reporter Miao Lingyun