Travel and lifestyle services offered may include helping cardholders reserve a dinner table at the most popular restaurants any day of the year, arranging private jet trips, securing consultancy services, or even overseas educational places for offspring or visa applications.

Dave Keung, president of American Express Co's China operation, said: "Chinese cardholders favor our travel and lifestyle services and they love to try something different through the unique arrangement offered by our cardholder services teams.

"It has also been observed that increasing numbers of wealthy cardholders redeem their points to help philanthropic causes, an emerging need for the rich to shoulder their growing social responsibilities."

Yang Ke, chief executive of China Minsheng Bank's credit card arm, said private business owners are the major contributors to the fast-growing high-end credit card market.

"These super rich accumulated their wealth through hard work and taking opportunities amid reforms and opening-up," said Yang.

"Their payment habits and lifestyle demands are changing fast and becoming more complex. Given the huge numbers of such people in China, I think upmarket credit card services will offer great opportunities that banks and card brands may leverage."

The world's four major payment brands by market share－Visa, MasterCard, China UnionPay and American Express－have all introduced niche-market credit card products to China.

Foreign bankcard players said they have been watching the market closely for years, as China has gradually opened up its yuan-denominated bankcard clearing market, which went live on June 1.