According to the current regulatory provisions, institutions eligible to carry out payment business include banking financial institutions and payment institutions that have obtained payment business licenses, and the business scope of payment institutions should include the corresponding business scope of online payment, prepaid card issuance and acceptance or bank card receipt. At present, most e-commerce platforms are not licensed. Therefore, it is illegal to carry out the collection and payment business, which may be seriously suspected of illegal business operation.

Whoever illegally engages in securities, futures and insurance business, or illegally engages in fund payment and settlement business without the approval of the relevant competent department of the state, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income.

Agency payment refers to the business that the payer transfers money to the target account through the agency payment system after providing the relevant bank account information and corresponding funds of the payment target. Simply put, commercial banks use their own settlement facilities to accept the entrustment of customers and handle the receipt and payment of designated funds. Agency payment can realize bank fund transfer transactions from public to public, from public to private, from private to public and from private to private.

Merchants find banks and third parties with payment licenses to handle payment business. Such payment business is legal. If they are looking for a payment platform without a payment license, it is non-compliant. Whoever illegally engages in securities, futures and insurance business, or illegally engages in fund payment and settlement business without the approval of the relevant competent department of the state, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income.

Legal basis:

Criminal law of the people's Republic of China

Article 225 Whoever, in violation of State regulations, commits one of the following illegal business operations and disrupts the market order, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income; If the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years, and shall also be fined not less than one time but not more than five times for illegal gains or confiscation of property:

(a) without permission, the franchise, monopoly of goods or other goods restricted by laws and administrative regulations;

(2) buying and selling import and export licenses, import and export certificates of origin and other business licenses or approval documents stipulated by laws and administrative regulations;

(four) without the approval of the relevant competent departments of the state, illegally engaged in securities, futures, insurance business, or illegally engaged in fund payment and settlement business;

(5) Other illegal business operations that seriously disrupt the market order.