> People seem to be paying on time and aware of their spending habits as a result. More than 1% aren't per month, every month - and the Chinese economy is curr

> People seem to be paying on time and aware of their spending habits as a result. More than 1% aren't per month, every month - and the Chinese economy is currently relatively stable, imagine a 2008 happening to those people. Also remember that some people may be borrowing to pay off the previous short-term loan - or are at the very least stuck continuously having to borrow from their future selves just to keep things afloat, each pay check evaporating as soon as it comes in. There's going to be a lot of people now stuck in a dangerous loop of dependency on these short-term loans at the best. > I do wonder what the advantage is for using credit in China. I think the advantage is small when compared to disadvantage. The advantage is small - you could get a good friend to lend you $10 to see you through a particularly bad month. The advantage of a friend is that they'll also tell you when enough is enough, when it's ongoing, when they believe you're borrowing for the wrong reasons. > In the U.S. it offers another layer of security, This is just a band aid for a much worse problem - that the average person in the US is living pay-check to pay-check, without money saved. > flexibility This is literally the only good reason I can think of for it's existence, but it's almost impossible to filter for these people. > builds credit Again, this shouldn't need to be a thing. > earns rewards compared to using debit or cash, The fact that cards don't earn rewards is an oversight on their part. The bank I'm with has two accounts, one is "easy access" and one is "savings". I can transfer from one to the other very easily, but I can only pay out of the "easy access" directly. If I keep money in the "savings" account for a period of time, I am rewarded with high interest, i.e. I am rewarded for saving money. Other shops in the local area also have "loyalty" cards which also reward purchases of certain items (it helps them predict what stock they will need and to shift excess stock if required, as well as collect data about customer purchasing habits). > is interest free as long as you pay on time Smoking is harmless as long as you only ever do it once. The point is that people get trapped and reliant on these loans, at a cost.