After American Express obtained its license in China, CITIC Bank was quick to partner with them and issue this card. On the American Express official website, it's categorized under Gold Card Debit.

I opened this card early on as well, so consider this the first post in a new series.

Opening the Card

Applying online with CITIC is straightforward. For a debit card, just go to the CITIC Bank App homepage → All Services → Card Supermarket to apply. The American Express RMB Card you want is under the Standard Card Series, alongside CITIC's three UnionPay card types, as well as the Mastercard dual-currency card, Mastercard foreign-currency card, and VISA foreign-currency card.

Tap Apply for Card, and you'll be redirected to a form-filling page. Just fill it out as prompted.

Opening the card costs 5 RMB, which will be credited back into your account afterward.

Once you've submitted, just wait at home. You'll receive a card like the one below.

The BIN is 377138, and the card is valid for only five years. However, CITIC lets you replace or renew the card without visiting a branch—just provide the card number, CVV, and identity info in the app. In other words, unless something else comes up, you only need to visit a branch once to get this card in hand.

Activation at the Branch

I activated mine at the CITIC Bank Nanning Branch. I brought nothing but my bank card and ID (I was pretty naive back then).

The whole process was done on a self-service machine. The staff double-checked that I was a local resident living locally, and then didn't ask for anything else like proof of employment or student status. They issued me a Type II account with a monthly limit of 5,000 RMB. For me at the time, getting a Type II account was already satisfying.

Usage Experience

According to what people say online, CITIC's non-UnionPay cards all support 3DS. Indeed, when I bound this Amex to Fantia, it did send verification codes. However, CITIC's decline rate is truly alarming, which is why I don't really use this card much myself.

Binding to Google Play works fine, as does WeChat, Alipay, and UnionPay QuickPass. At least that shows the card is functional. It's a shame—CITIC, when will you fix that decline rate?

Afterword

Some will say, "Hey, you should have gotten a Type I account." That's true, but I saved that opportunity for another card of mine—the CITIC Licai Bao Standard Card (which I got through a loophole, with virtually no limit). I figured it's better to give the Type I account to a UnionPay card, since Type I accounts allow foreign currency exchange. I did the same with Bank of China.