百度拟联手中信推出在线银行
BAT金融战在即，各家何去何从？
测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：
conglomerate 集团，大企业
affiliate 使隶属于
pilot 试点
sought 探寻
downplay 淡化
阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。
Baidu in Citic Bank tie-up despite doubts over online bank model（414words）
By Gabriel Wildau in Shanghai
Chinese internet search group Baidu will partner with Citic Bank to launch an online bank,local media reported,even as banks launched by Alibaba and Tencent have failed to meet expectations.
Internet companies have shaken up China's financial sector in recent years,with mobile payments,wealth management and peer-to-peer lending the biggest growth areas.
China Citic Bank,part of state-owned conglomerate Citic Group,suspended its shares in Shanghai and Hong Kong on Monday pending announcement of a “proposed external investment”. Baidu declined to comment on the report by 21st Century Business Herald,but said it would make an announcement tomorrow.
In January,Tencent launched the country's first online-only bank,WeBank,named for the gaming and social media company's popular WeChat instant messaging app. The financial affiliate of Alibaba Group,Ant Financial,followed with its own — MyBank — in June.
China's banking regulator granted bank licenses to Tencent and Ant Financial as part of a pilot programme to encourage privately owned banks. In a sign of the government's hope that private banks can help channel finance to small,private companies,Chinese premier Li Keqiang attended WeBank's launch ceremony. China's nine largest banks are all state-owned and favour lending to large,state-owned groups.
But WeBank's maiden year has been rocky. Bank president Cao Tong resigned in September,and vice president Zheng Xinlin,who handled interbank business,also recently resigned,the bank confirmed on Tuesday. WeBank has also sought to downplay expansion expectations.
“We don't think of ourselves as running a traditional bank. WeBank is an internet platform through and through,but one with a banking licence,” Gu Min,chairman,said last month.
WeBank has granted Rmb4bn（$627m）in consumer loans,of which Rmb2bn are currently outstanding,said the bank. MyBank had granted Rmb3bn in loans to 180,000 small companies in its four months,executives said at a press conference in October,without specifying the amount outstanding.
A key issue for online lenders is whether they can accept deposits under Chinese banking rules that require customers to present identification in person at a bank branch in order to open an account. In September,China Merchants Bank,China's sixth-largest lender,ended an arrangement that allowed its clients to open WeBank accounts.
Last March Citic announced plans to issue “virtual” credit cards in partnership with Alibaba and Tencent that would allow users to pay by scanning QR codes,but the central bank halted the initiative days later.
Citic did not reply to requests for comment on Tuesday.
请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：
1.Which one is not mentioned as the biggest growth area for China's financial sector?
A.mobile payments
B.wealth management
C.insurance Finance
D.peer-to-peer lending
[1] 答案
2.What did China Citic Bank do on Monday?
A.announced its Listing Agreement
B.dividend in specie
C.suspended its shares
D.offered for subscription
[2] 答案
3.Who launched China's first online-only bank?
A.Baidu
B.Alibaba
C.Tencent
D.Google
[3] 答案
4.What is the key issue for online lenders when open an account?
A.line of credit
B.identity verification
C.problem of sign and seal
D.deposit period
[4] 答案
[1]答案：C.insurance Finance
解释：互联网公司近年撼动了中国金融业，移动支付、理财以及个人对个人贷款成为最大的增长领域。
[2]答案：A.announced its Listing Agreement
解释：中信银行宣布其在上海和香港上市的股票停牌，等待宣布一项“拟议的外部投资”。
[3]答案：C.Tencent
解释：腾讯发起成立了中国首家在线银行微众银行(WeBank)。
[4]答案：B.identity verification
解释：在线银行面临的一个关键问题是，他们是否能根据中国银行业的规定接收存款，这些规定要求客户开设账户时必须亲自到银行网点出示身份证件。