The authorities on Sunday violently dispersed a peaceful protest by hundreds of depositors, who sought in vain to demand their life savings back from banks that have run into a deepening cash crisis.
Since April, four rural banks in China's central Henan province have frozen millions of dollars worth of deposits, threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of customers in an economy already battered by draconian Covid lockdowns.
The demonstration is among the largest China has seen since the pandemic, with domestic travel limited by various Covid restrictions on movement. Last month, Zhengzhou authorities even resorted to tampering with the country's digital Covid health-code system to restrict the movements of depositors and thwart their planned protest, sparking a nationwide outcry.
Chinese authorities will start repaying most of the victims in the nation’s biggest bank scam after hundreds of angry customers took to the streets again over the weekend to ratchet up pressure on the government.
Clients from the four rural banks in the central province of Henan and one in Anhui will be repaid “in advance” starting Friday, according to statements by local branches of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission. Individuals with deposits of up to 50,000 yuan will be repaid first, with arrangements for the rest subject to further notice.
