AliPay's 'Closed System' Is Biggest Reason for Regulatory Action, Expert Says

(Beijing) – The central bank's recent moves to regulate third-party payment services including Alipay have been questioned by critics and run into a backlash from the public, but supporters say the regulator was only doing what is necessary to protect consumers and the market.

The bank is mainly concerned that the Alipay network has formed a closed system in which the flows of money largely fall outside its supervision, said Lin Caiyi, chief economist of brokerage firm Guotai & Junan Securities.