Nation plans social credit system pilot

From borrowing books at public libraries to bank loans, personal and enterprise credit records are growing in value in China.

The first demonstration zone for a social credit system in China, aiming to promote benefits of good credit, is planned for the Yangtze River Delta region, encompassing Shanghai municipality, and the provinces ofJi an gsu,Anhu ian dZ hejiang.

The pilot plan, approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, is expected to help nurture a sound business and social environment in the region and regulate individual behavior based on credit records.

Under the system, trustworthy entrepreneurs and individuals will be rewarded, while infringers will be discredited.

The Yangtze River Delta region has benefitted from growth in enterprise credit and intellectual property rights protection.

Since 2015, provincial-level governments have launched joint campaigns against crossregion and cross-industry IPR infringement and counterfeits.

By using big data, public security departments in the region have been able to work together to fight internet business fraud.

Cases of infringement and counterfeits in the region are listed on the government website ipraction.gov.cn, with detailed information open to the public.

“A collaboration to crack down on fake and shoddy goods has helped mitigate barriers of local protectionism,” said Lin Haihan, head of the trademark division at the Shanghai Administration for Industry and Commerce.

For the tourist sector, a trial online tourist information center was launched in November to provide information on bad records of tourist agencies.

Jin Xingming, deputy secretary-general of the Shanghai municipal government, said the unified credit system of the tourist market in the delta region is a “breakthrough” for the linkage of the overall credit system.

“The credit system can deliver market-oriented penalties through blacklisting discredited entrepreneurs. The system can join the efforts of social, government and market supervision,” Jin said.

Zhao Qiang, an entrepreneur from Anhui province, saw benefits of the system last year. It took Zhao just three days to borrow 7 million yuan ($1 million) from the Lai’an Rural Commercial Bank when his stationery manufacturing company was in urgent need of funds.

The bank said the swift loan approval was due to Zhao’s credit rating.

In Shanghai, citizens with good social credit can get a “credit card” in Shanghai Library and borrow books for free.

However, a lack of regulation means that without a transparent social credit system, rewards and penalties cannot be issued fairly.

“The social credit system pilot should break up smallscale credit reward and punishment initiatives in different cities, and provide a systematic and unified measure, which can be extended to a national practice,” said Wang Ningjiang, director of the Zhejiang Provincial Credit Center.

He said the pilot should prioritize blacklisting firms with bad records related to environmental damage or food safety.