Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd is to launch a small loans service on its popular mobile messaging application We Chat, underscoring the company's ambition to expand its reach in China's booming online finance sector.
Huang Liming, vice-president of Tencent-backed Internet bank WeBank, said the company has been testing the service - 'Weilidai', which literally means "a tiny bit of loan" - among three million selected users since May.
Without revealing when the service will be launched, Huang told an online finance forum in Beijing on Wednesday that the service will provide loans from 500 yuan to 200,000 yuan (US$78-US$31,400), without guarantee or collateral.
He hopes to attract 15 million customers by the end of the year, and it will be targeted at young consumers and small business owners.
Successful applicants are likely to receive money in just a few minutes, much faster than gaining credit from traditional banks. WeBank will be able to access credit records of users through data collected on social networking platforms and traditional bank account information.