Eight lending apps were named by the National Internet Finance Association of China (中国互联网金融协会, NIFA) on November 2 for advertising loans as “low threshold” (低门槛). It is the association’s first self-regulatory notice since the Measures for the Administration of Online Marketing of Financial Products took effect on September 30.
The apps are Yaoxianghua (耀享花), Youdao Fenqi (有道分期), Xiaoxiang Qianbao (小象钱包), Tianxia Fenqi (天下分期), Rongshu Jietiao (榕树借条), Zhong An Dai (众安贷), Tongtong Fenqi (通通分期) and 58 Haojie (58好借). China Securities Journal reported that microlenders developed seven of them, and Jiangsu Gaoyou Rural Commercial Bank developed Youdao Fenqi. Operators have 15 working days to fix the ads and report back, or face self-regulatory measures and referral to regulators.
The rules, issued in April by the People’s Bank of China and seven other agencies, bar six inducing phrases in online financial marketing: “low risk”, “low threshold”, “money in seconds”, “high return”, “low interest rate” and “no cost”. Microlenders were already barred from one-sided claims about low thresholds, low rates or high credit limits under interim rules for small loan companies. On October 31 NIFA also published guidance that payment pages must not show loan or wealth products a customer has not already opened, Caixin reported.
- 8 apps named, 7 developed by microlenders and 1 by a rural bank
- 15 working days to correct the ads and report
- 6 inducing phrases banned since September 30
Why it matters: The notice is small, but it shows how the September rules will be enforced: NIFA monitors app stores, names products and passes unresolved cases to regulators that can impose penalties. Small lenders that depend on app-store traffic and ad copy to find borrowers are the most exposed. Together with the October 31 guidance on payment pages, it tells lenders and platforms that marketing wording is now being checked case by case.
Sources: 中国证券报 China Securities Journal, November 4, 2026; 证券日报 Securities Daily, via the Wuhan financial work office, November 4, 2026; 第一财经 Yicai, November 2026; 财新 Caixin, November 2, 2026; 21世纪经济报道 21st Century Business Herald, April 24, 2026 (Chinese-language sources, translated)
Image: N509FZ, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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