China targets better credit access for gig workers to help stabilize employment

China is stepping up efforts to improve access to credit for millions of gig workers, with Ding Xiangqun, minister of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, saying the regulator will encourage financial institutions to develop dedicated, inclusive financial products for new employment groups, such as truck drivers, ride-hailing drivers, food delivery riders, and couriers, to support businesses and stabilize employment.

It was estimated that the number of flexible workers in China had exceeded 200 million, Wu Xiuzhang, vice-minister of human resources and social security, said in a report to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in December 2025. According to a post by the Ministry of Transport on its WeChat official account, as of Oct 31, 2024, a total of 7.48 million ride-hailing driver licenses had been issued nationwide.

The financial needs of truck drivers, ride-hailing drivers, food delivery riders, and couriers are typically characterized by small loan sizes, high frequency, and urgent demand. Because many of them lack formal employment contracts, stable payroll records, or collateral such as property and vehicles, their financing needs have long been met by risky lending channels, according to Dong Ximiao, chief economist at Merchants Union Consumer Finance and executive director of the Shanghai Institution for Finance and Development.

The NFRA issued a notice in May on improving financial services for micro and small enterprises, encouraging lenders to develop credit products tailored to the financing needs, financial conditions, and risk profiles of new employment groups.

Meanwhile, the preparatory group of the self-regulatory committee for online lending under the National Internet Finance Association of China recently introduced a package of initiatives to promote the healthy development of the online lending industry. The measures require preparatory group members — including Du Xiaoman, Ant Group, Tencent, JD Technology, and Douyin — to implement guidelines strictly while encouraging other industry participants to voluntarily adopt similar standards.

The preparatory group called on online lenders to provide support for new urban residents, flexible workers, truck drivers, ride-hailing drivers, food delivery riders, couriers, micro and small enterprises, and individually-owned businesses by offering more favorable lending terms.

It also encouraged online lenders, in cooperation with partner financial institutions, to provide relief measures — including suspending debt collection, extending loan maturities, and waiving or reducing interest — for borrowers facing major family emergencies or temporary liquidity shortages.

The preparatory group is also studying the feasibility of establishing an industrywide hardship relief fund jointly financed by internet finance institutions.

Some licensed financial institutions have already embedded financial services into high-frequency digital platforms, including ride-hailing, navigation, and lifestyle service apps.

Access to operational data via these platforms helps reduce information asymmetry by allowing financial institutions to better assess the actual repayment capacity of flexible workers. Additionally, expanding formal financial services into this market could also help squeeze out illegal online lending, Dong said.

He recommended promoting the sharing of de-identified operational data between digital platforms and financial institutions within a compliance framework, enabling intelligent risk management to shift from post-event response toward earlier intervention.

He also suggested that loan limits should be based on borrowers' actual business capacity, with more flexible repayment arrangements to better match the income patterns of these workers. Government-backed guarantees and insurance products could also help mitigate lending risks.

Shanghai Huarui Bank, a privately owned bank in China, has connected to the national public supervision and service platform for road freight vehicles and has established partnerships with leading companies, including ZTO Express, an express service provider in the country, and Chinese e-commerce giant JD. The bank obtains authentic operating data from these platforms and uses it to build dynamic credit assessment models.

The bank has also designed financial products around specific use cases. To meet the high-frequency financing needs of the target customer group, it offers products such as electronic toll collection installment plans, "use now, pay later" services, and mobility supply chain finance. It also provides working capital products for food delivery riders facing urgent vehicle repair expenses.