In the past two years, affected by multiple factors such as the outbreak of the epidemic and the macro economy, the non-performing rate of banks has increased, among which the non-performing rate of retail loans has increased, and the non-performing rate of credit cards has also risen.
According to data from the central bank, in the third quarter of 2021, the total outstanding credit of credit cards overdue for half a year was 1,086.926 billion yuan, a month-on-month increase of 6.26%.
In 2020, the non-performing rate of most banks will increase. Among them, the non-performing rate of credit cards of Bohai Bank even soared to 6.26% by the end of 2020.
Behind the rising credit card non-performing rate, a black product called "credit card overdue management" is particularly active in Baidu search engine, official account and short video website.
The first financial reporter searched for the keyword "overdue credit card" on Baidu, and the advertisements of "overdue credit card management" were overwhelming. Bankers called it the "anti-collection alliance", which kept pace with the "insurance malicious agency complaints" in the previous two years. It has become the most troublesome "Internet black industry" in the financial industry.
So, what kind of industry is this, and how did the "anti-collection alliance" convince banks to voluntarily give up interest income?
What risks and violations does this actually involve?
opportunity
After her credit card was overdue for 2 months, Ms. Chen accidentally received an advertisement called "Credit Card Overdue Management". The content of the advertisement claimed that it can solve the customer's overdue credit card problem, personalized installment, no interest, no penalty interest, and interest suspension. Hang the account.
After contacting the other party, the staff told Miss Chen that the consequences of overdue are very serious, and the business consulting company specializes in helping customers solve overdue credit cards. Customers only need to sign a power of attorney and entrust the other party to negotiate with the bank on their behalf, and the overdue can be converted. Make repayments for personalized instalments.
According to the power of attorney sent by Ms. Chen to the first financial reporter, it shows that: in view of the fact that Party A (Ms. Chen) has delayed the performance of multiple credit cards, and confirmed that the amount owed to the credit card exceeds the repayment ability of Party A.
However, Party A still has the willingness to repay. According to the "Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Credit Card Business of Commercial Banks", the "Civil Code of the People's Republic of China" and other relevant laws and regulations, Party A entrusts Party B (a business consulting company) to negotiate with the corresponding bank on an equal footing, and A personalized installment repayment agreement is hereby reached.
The agency authority of the entrusted party (Party B): including but not limited to negotiation, reaching a personalized installment repayment agreement, collating and collecting relevant evidence materials, making phone calls in the name of the entrusting party and informing relevant information, etc.
The staff of the business consulting company told Ms. Chen that most banks are negotiated, but there are also a few banks that are difficult to negotiate, such as China Merchants Bank.
The ideal negotiation result is no interest, no penalty interest, and a maximum of 60 instalments for the overdue part, but in the end it depends on the result of the negotiation. Once the negotiation starts, the credit card will be frozen. As for how to negotiate with the bank, the other party does not agree. not disclosed.
Of course, negotiation comes at a cost.
The staff of the business consulting company said that it only needs to charge the customer a service fee of 5 points, which is 5% of the total arrears, and pay in two installments.
The first financial reporter called a number of companies engaged in similar businesses as overdue credit card customers, and found that there are roughly two charging methods: one is calculated according to 5% to 10% of the total overdue amount, and the other is 2,000 to 5,000 yuan. Upfront service fee + 20% to 50% of the negotiated discount.
The above-mentioned person from the business consulting company told Miss Chen that since he joined the company last year, he has accumulated hundreds of customers, and at the same time showed Miss Chen several screenshots of WeChat communicating with customers.
The "anti-collection alliance" routine
And once a client signs an entrustment agreement with these "anti-collection alliance" companies, it becomes a "marionette."
Wu Zhiping, deputy administrative director of Guangdong Zhonghan Law Firm, introduced the routine of the "anti-collection alliance" to the first financial reporter: On the one hand, the "anti-collection alliance" will instigate clients to forge false materials, such as materials for serious illness, the only housing Certificates, criminal-related certificates, death certificates, modification of credit information for multiple debts, etc., and then hold these false certificates to coerce the bank into interest-free installments or principal reduction.
"Some banks are more genuine and will see through the more obvious fake certificates, while some fake certificates are more difficult to see through, or the cost of seeing through is relatively high, and it is easy to get through the customs at the bank." Wu Zhiping said.
On the other hand, after the customer's credit card is overdue, they will receive a collection call from the bank outsourcing company. The "Anti-Collection Alliance" will teach the customer some words, provoking and inducing the collection personnel to say excessive words, and then relying on the evidence of these speech recordings and so on. Report to the police, or complain to the central bank, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and other regulatory authorities, and the bank cares about its reputation the most.
From this point of view, the collection companies outsourced by banks hate the "anti-collection alliance", and the collection and anti-collection are tit for tat.
"When we make collection calls, we must not only keep in mind that there is no problem with our own words, but also always pay attention to the change of the customer's tone. For example, if the customer becomes extremely extreme and always wants to stimulate us, we must suspect whether there is a 'black product' behind him. Once confirmed, it must be reported to the bank." The person in charge of a collection company in Shenzhen told Yicai.com that if the collection company was set up by an "anti-collection alliance", it would not only bring reputational damage to the cooperative bank, but also the bank May terminate the cooperation with the collection company.
If the “Anti-Collection Alliance” successfully coerces the bank, it can get a generous balance of overdue customers. It doesn’t matter if the false materials are discovered. Money, if you don't succeed, you will receive money.
"We have also encountered such cases. The 'anti-collection alliance' threatened customers to report to the bank with false materials, making them a smear on the customer's credit information. In desperation, the customer could only give money." Wu Zhiping said.
In addition, there is an even more bottomless "anti-collection alliance", which uses debt planning and debt counseling as a gimmick to trick customers into paying money through Moments or group publicity. , followed the "one shot for another place" strategy.
The coerced objects are not only customers and banks, but also small loan companies have become the targets of the "anti-collection alliance".
A reporter from China Business News learned that a large micro-loan company has been blackmailed by the "Anti-Collection Alliance" one after another, and every time it has to organize a lineup of dozens of customers.
The difficulty of hitting
According to a judgment of the "Anti-Collection Alliance" obtained by a reporter from China Business News, customers under the control of the "Anti-Collection Alliance" took the bank to court and made seven major lawsuits: 1. Revocation of overdue records; 2. To terminate the loan agreement; 3. To refund the interest and fees collected by the bank; 4. To compensate for mental damage; 5. To compensate for lost work and rights protection; 6. To cancel the personal information of the loan; 7. To issue an apology document.
In the end, the bank went to great lengths to win the verdict, which deterred the extortion efforts of the Anti-Collection Coalition.
"We believe that the 'anti-collection alliance' is essentially debt evasion, which not only disrupts the bank's normal post-loan management, but also disrupts the social credit system and even endangers the stability of the financial system." Wu Zhiping said.
"At present, the supervision is cracking down on financial black production, and the 'anti-collection alliance' has actually involved financial fraud." A person from a bank in Guangzhou told Yicai.com that the fight against the "anti-collection alliance" requires banks, supervision, economic investigation, and the general public. Customers form synergy.
Previously, in the special rectification work group for online lending risks, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission stated that it will resolutely crack down on malicious debt evasion, promote more than 200 institutions to connect to various credit reporting systems, and strengthen the “anti-collection alliance” and other illegal network groups. Group governance.
In fact, the "anti-collection alliance" has always existed. After 2020, it will become more arrogant and blatantly publicize it at various traffic entrances. Although the supervision has been strictly investigating, it is still difficult to precisely crack down.
Wu Zhiping said, on the one hand, there is a demand in the market, and there is no legal way to release it; on the other hand, behind the "anti-collection alliance" has formed an industrial chain, professional operation, and even has its own team of lawyers, "They also have no leaks. The use of rhetoric and various countermeasures, the edge ball of the policy, the loopholes in the bank, and the involvement of a large number of individual borrowers, so there are difficulties in the process of cracking down."
At present, some banks have reminded consumers that the "Anti-Collection Alliance" is suspected of illegal and criminal activities, which will make financial consumers trapped in the quagmire without knowing it.
Cardholders should strengthen the awareness of rational consumption and reasonable borrowing, and do not believe in the "flickering" of the "Anti-Collection Alliance", otherwise it may lead to the loss of people and money.