Chinese loan sharks are demanding nude photos as collateral from female borrowers which can be used for blackmail if they fall behind on their repayments, according to a recent article by the Financial Times.
The aggressive tactics are an example of the drastic debt recovery measures that are being employed in the slowing Chinese economy. Female college students in the southern province of Guangdong were told to hand over naked photos of themselves holding their ID cards, with lenders threatening to make them public if they failed to repay their microloans, according to the Nandu Daily, the local newspaper. Blackmailing with nude photos joins a long list of threats including property destruction and bodily injury committed by loan sharks attempting to collect unpaid loans.
Loans carrying interest rates greater than four times official rates are considered “loan shark” lending in China and the creditors’ rights are not protected under Chinese law.
Source: Financial Times
