New rules on prepaid cards to curb corruption

People wishing to buy prepaid cards with a total value of 10,000 yuan ($1,600) will have to use their real names and present identification as of Thursday, when new regulations on prepaid cards issued by China's central bank take effect.

The new regulations are being introduced, in part, to try to combat corruption because people have been known to use the cards to bribe officials.

Prepaid cards can be "loaded" with money and then be used in a variety of retail outlets or restaurants.

According to the new regulations, a single prepaid card registered with the users name cannot exceed 5,000 yuan in value, but a person can get multiple cards totaling 10,000 yuan. An unregistered prepaid card's value cannot exceed 1,000 yuan, according to the new regulations by People's Bank of China.

The regulations also bans the use of credit cards to buy or charge prepaid cards, including those for consumption in shopping malls or for taking public transport.

A notice, issued by seven ministerial departments in May last year, imposed similar restrictions on issuing and purchase of prepaid cards.