SHANGHAI - China UnionPay (CUP) has extended its overseas emergency cash assistance service to 20 countries and regions, CUP said Wednesday.

Holders of CUP bank cards will be able to access the service in 52 outlets located in 20 countries and regions, including outlets recently installed in the United States and Japan.

The overseas emergency cash assistance service is targeted at UnionPay credit cards issued by all of its cooperative institutions.

CUP cardholders can get emergency cash assistance from nearby outlets if they are experiencing emergencies like lost, stolen or malfunctioning cards.

Each cardholder will also receive the cash assistance in accordance with the credit limit confirmed by the card-issuing bank, with the maximum amount capped at $5,000.

In 2011, CUP launched the overseas emergency cash assistance service to serve all holders of CUP bank cards during their outbound travel.

To date, this service has been launched in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Australia, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Russia, Canada, the US and Japan.