I think this is regulatory policy. But you have to check for details. If there are no specific policies, it may be due to the glass ceiling or that companies in China's real economy do not feel that they can obtain higher profits. Whether the credit card itself is profitable, even if banks are working very hard now, other economies may not be able to obtain more generous profits. When capital is limited, it is better to invest in things that you are more sure of. Sears issuing cards could be an extension of its business. The American Express card is also a special case. In fact, there are not many cases of cards issued by non-bank institutions in the world, and it is probably more based on non-economic perspectives. The answer to this question is not complicated, as long as you understand what the credit card business is. The essence of credit card business is actually small consumer credit business for individuals. China's financial system has been operating in a highly monopolized and closed state for a long time. As an important product of banks' personal credit business, credit cards have been developing since their birth in 1985 in the absence of a non-bank financial system. It is understandable that it can only be run within the bank. The answer is not complicated, but by the way, let’s extend this question and see who is issuing credit cards abroad? As you can see from the picture on the top of the question, except for Visa and MasterCard, which are transfer clearing organizations and do not issue cards by themselves, the other twelve are all major credit card issuers in the United States. Why come up with a “card issuer”? If divided according to China's understanding, Bank of America, Citibank, Chase Bank, US Bank, and Barclays Bank belong to the series of card-issuing banks. They all base their business on traditional banking services, while others include American Express and DiscoverCard. None of the institutions are credit card issuers that started out as traditional banking businesses, including MBNA, which was acquired by Bank of America a few years ago. They all fall into this category. The reason why there are a large number of what we consider “non-bank” card issuers in the United States is inseparable from the open financial system in the United States. In the early 20th century, some department stores, catering and entertainment industries, and oil companies (come on) in the United States, in order to attract customers, promote goods, and stimulate sales, they selectively issued chips similar to metal badges to some customers as consumption vouchers. Customers could Purchase goods on credit and pay on time at these stores and branches that issue chips. This became the prototype of credit cards and the beginning of microfinance business entering daily life.