• 2 min read
UnionPay cards from Rosselkhozbank now link to WeChat Pay
Rosselkhozbank’s UnionPay cards are now reportedly linking to WeChat Pay without failures, giving Russian users a simpler way to pay in China.
Image: kod
Rosselkhozbank UnionPay cards now appear to link reliably to WeChat Pay, even though neither the bank nor Tencent has publicly announced the change. The discovery was first reported by the Telegram channel China Guide, and Kod Durova said it independently verified the setup.
For Russian tourists, residents in China, and frequent travelers, that matters because WeChat Pay remains one of the country’s two main everyday payment methods alongside Alipay. Users do not need to preload the wallet: after linking the card, payments are charged directly to it. That means they can either show a payment code in the app or scan a QR code at checkout.
The setup happens inside WeChat itself: go to Profile, then Payments and Services, then Money. From there, users enter the card number, confirm the action by SMS, and complete a zero-value verification payment. According to the Telegram channel and the publication’s own test, the card was added on the first try.
Earlier, linking Rosselkhozbank cards was far less predictable. Guides had described the process as working inconsistently, and among Russian banks, ATB cards were more commonly recommended. Many users instead turned to Yunshanfu and Nihao China, with Rosselkhozbank announcing support for the latter back in February 2026.
The bigger question is how long this will last. Similar windows have opened and closed before for Russian cards, so the real test will come over the next few weeks as users try not just linking cards, but making routine purchases in stores, transport, and services across China.
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Computing Editor
Tomas lives in the terminal. He covers chips, laptops, and operating systems with a focus on performance and efficiency. He reads kernel changelogs the way other people read fiction, and he's always on the hunt for the perfect mechanical keyboard switch. If it processes data, Tomas has an opinion on it.
via ITzine
