Paying a Chinese factory in yuan or dollars: bank details with CNAPS, the beneficiary's English name, bank questions to the supplier and Chinese holidays.
Estimate the minimum fee
The final fee and rate are fixed in the payment order
Minimum amount: 10,000 USD or equivalent
This is a minimum, not an offer or a rate lock. The final figure depends on the country, amount and the banks involved and is fixed in the payment order.
Request a quoteChina’s national currency is the yuan, officially the renminbi (CNY). Exporters issue invoices in yuan or in US dollars, and in trade with Russian buyers the yuan has become more prominent in recent years. The payment goes out strictly in the currency stated in the invoice and the contract. If the supplier does not mind either way, we will calculate both amounts in roubles before you choose.
Outside mainland China the yuan trades as CNH, mostly in Hong Kong. The beneficiary is credited with ordinary CNY, but the exchange rate at sending depends on which market the route goes through. That is why the rate is calculated for the route: it appears in the payment order together with the fee, and you see the total in roubles before you transfer the money.
China does not use IBAN. A transfer requires the bank’s SWIFT code, the account number, the branch name and address, and for yuan also the twelve-digit CNAPS code: the bank’s identifier in China’s interbank payment system.
The main reason a bank returns a transfer is the beneficiary name. A Chinese company has a name in Chinese characters in the register and an English name under which its bank knows it. Copy the bank’s version into the contract and the invoice, letter for letter, with Co., Ltd. at the end. The second typical mistake: the supplier has separate accounts for yuan and for foreign currency. The bank may reject dollars sent to a yuan account or convert them at its own rate.
Chinese banks match incoming funds against the foreign trade contract. The money will come from the agent, not from your company, and the supplier’s bank is entitled to ask why the payer is different. Warn the supplier in advance. The payment reference cites the contract and invoice numbers, and that is usually enough for an answer.
For the same reason, we select the agent for the specific beneficiary bank in China, not for the country as a whole: the route to one bank is open, to the next one it is not. If you need a guarantee, the roubles wait in a special escrow account at a Russian bank until the yuan are credited: this scheme is on request, for an additional fee. VEDmost’s fee is paid by the executing agent: you will not receive a separate invoice from us.
Russian companies buy machine tools and equipment, electronics and components, auto parts, textiles, packaging and household goods in China. A factory’s usual terms: an advance when the order is placed and the balance before shipment, against a copy of the bill of lading or after inspection of the batch. Equipment is paid for in tranches under the contract schedule. With us, each tranche goes under its own payment order, while the agreement with the agent stays the same.
If the seller is a trading company rather than a factory, the contract must show who the supplier is and who the manufacturer is. This matters to the beneficiary’s bank as well.
The main pause is the Spring Festival, Chinese New Year, in late January or in February. The official holiday lasts about a week, and many factories stay closed for two to three weeks. The second pause is Golden Week, from October 1 to 7. On these days Chinese banks do not credit transfers. If an advance must arrive before the holiday, send it early and allow for the execution period set in the agency agreement.
Five steps, the same for every country. Country specifics are described above.
Beneficiary's country, amount, currency, the invoice and the contract or bill, your company's and the beneficiary's details. We review the request before any documents are signed.
We select a network company and a route and prepare the documents. You sign an agency agreement with that company, which sets the execution period, and a payment order: amount, exchange rate and fee. All of this before you transfer your roubles.
You transfer roubles to the network company from your account at a Russian bank. If you need a guarantee, they wait for execution in a special escrow account, for an additional fee.
The agent sends the currency to the beneficiary under this payment order. A sub-agent is engaged only with your consent. The route does not change without a payment order.
We send you the payment confirmation, and a SWIFT confirmation on request. Then the completion certificate, the agent's report and the currency control package. The deal is not closed until the currency has been sent to the beneficiary.
If you need a guarantee, the payment goes through a special escrow account at a Russian bank: the roubles wait there until the agent sends the currency to the beneficiary and are released only upon execution. This scheme carries an additional fee, shown in the quote before the agreement.
The agent executes the payment within 3 business days: the period is written into the agency agreement.
If the beneficiary's bank accepts payment only from a specific payer, the agent engages a sub-agent. Only with your consent. Your agency agreement does not change.
For large volumes, on request, we assign an agent backed by a large exporter's surety; some companies in our network have one. It can be combined with escrow.
Tell us the rate you pay now or send your current agent’s documents. We’ll calculate the all-in cost with the FX markup and charges and look for a lower rate in our network. If there isn’t one, we’ll say so. The comparison is free.
The currency stated in the contract and the invoice. If the supplier accepts both, we will calculate both amounts in roubles: the difference depends on the supplier's bank and on the routes open to agents in our pool on the payment date.
A twelve-digit bank code in China's interbank payment system. The supplier provides it together with the SWIFT code and the account number. For a transfer in yuan, it helps the bank identify the beneficiary's branch precisely.
The money comes from the agent, not from the buyer named in the contract. The beneficiary's bank is entitled to ask for an explanation. It is enough for the supplier to show the contract and the invoice cited in the payment reference.
You can send the payment, but Chinese banks do not credit transfers on official holidays, and factories stay closed longer than banks. Send an advance for a post-holiday shipment early.
Payment is made by bank transfer under the contract and the invoice. A transfer to a payment app is possible only if agents in our pool have such a route for your documents. We will tell you before you transfer your roubles.
Describe the payment. We'll reply with a proposed route and terms. We name the agent in advance, and the rate and fee go into the payment order before your roubles are debited.