CHINA UnionPay Co has provided point-of-sale machines to temporary merchants to help smooth the use of bank cards in earthquake-hit areas in Sichuan Province, the company said yesterday.

Merchants have set up temporary shops in these areas in the province which was hit by an 8.0-magnitude quake on May 12. The country's sole bank card system operator has also tied up with rural cooperatives and post offices, which accept cash deposits, in the areas to improve bankcard services for rural workers to ensure they can withdraw cash conveniently when they return home.

UnionPay will also quicken the re-issuing of bank cards for quake survivors who lost theirs or deposit receipts during the quake.

A multi-donation channel, including the UnionPay payment system, online, mobile phone and telephone payments, has also been opened to enable swift payment and disbursement of donated money.

The Shanghai-based firm has also provided funds to support poor students in the areas to resume their studies. It will give 2 million yuan (US$285,715) annually for three years on top of its 6.23-million-yuan donation.