Licence, Contract, Bank Account: One Company

Before you pay a Chinese supplier, three documents should name exactly the same legal entity: the business licence you were shown, the contract or proforma invoice you sign, and the bank account that receives your money. If any one of them names a different company, the protection the other two seem to give you may not apply.

This sounds obvious, but it is one of the most common gaps we see in buyer enquiries. Buyers check the licence carefully, then wire money to an account in another company's name without noticing. This guide shows how to line the three up, and what to do when they don't match.

If your supplier has asked you to pay a personal account rather than a company account, that is a separate red flag covered in our guide to Chinese suppliers asking for payment to a personal bank account. This article is about payments that go to a company, just not the right one.

Why the Three Must Match

A business licence tells you that a specific legal entity exists and what it is registered to do. A contract creates obligations for a specific legal entity. A bank account belongs to a specific legal entity. If the licence is for Company A, the contract is with Company B, and the money goes to Company C, then:

• Company A's clean record tells you nothing about B or C.
• If something goes wrong, your claim is against whoever signed the contract, which may not be the company you checked.
• Tracing or recalling a payment depends on which company actually received it.

This is general guidance for checking your counterparty, not legal advice. For high-value contracts, have a lawyer review who the contracting party is.

Real Cases: When the Three Did Not Match

The cases below come from buyers who contacted ChineseCheck in 2026. Identifying details have been removed.

A mainland licence, a Hong Kong bank account

A Gulf-based buyer of industrial chemicals first searched for the supplier using a number that turned out to be a Hong Kong business registration number, so a mainland company search returned nothing. That Hong Kong number belonged to a company with a different name, registered at an office in Kowloon.

The supplier then sent a genuine mainland business licence. It belonged to a customs-registered trading and technical-services company with no manufacturing in its registered scope, at an address shared by many registered businesses. The bank details, however, named the Hong Kong company, with an offshore US dollar account. Nothing in the records linked the two companies.

The bank details sheet also carried an outdated registration number and a "VAT number," which is not a number Hong Kong issues. We advised the buyer to ask for the invoice and the bank account to be in the name of the mainland company whose licence they had been shown.

Two entities in one supplier's own paperwork

A buyer comparing aluminium suppliers noticed that one supplier's website and its own product brochure named two different companies at two different addresses. Once the buyer obtained the Chinese legal name of the company that would invoice them, its registered address matched the website, and the company turned out to be very new. A second supplier the same buyer checked used an English name that did not exist in any register; the Chinese company behind it had changed its shareholders, registered capital, and legal representative within the previous twelve months.

A renamed company that was the same entity

A machinery parts trader saw one name on the contract and another on the equipment nameplate. Here the answer was reassuring: the supplier had changed its name, and its Unified Social Credit Code, which does not change when a company is renamed, matched across both. The register also lists former names. Same code, same legal entity.

How to Check That They Match

Step 1: Get the Chinese legal name and credit code from each document

Ask the supplier for the Chinese legal name if any document only shows an English name. English names are not registered in mainland China and can vary between documents. If you are unsure how to read a licence, see how to read a Chinese business license in English.

Step 2: Compare them line by line

Any "no" is a question to ask before paying, not after.

Step 3: Check the company that will actually receive your money

Run your checks on the account holder, not just the company on the licence. Look at its registration status, registered business scope, age, recent changes in shareholders or legal representative, and court records. Our supplier verification guide covers each of these.

When the Names Differ: Legitimate Reasons and How to Test Them

A mismatch is not automatically fraud. Some arrangements are common:

The test in every case is the same: your contract should be with the company that receives your money, and you should have checked that company. If the supplier will not put the receiving company on the contract, treat that as a serious warning.

Red Flags That Need an Answer Before You Pay

• The account holder's name differs from the licence and the contract, with no documents explaining the relationship.
• Bank details arrive in a separate email, or change after the order is agreed.
• Bank paperwork carries registration numbers that don't match the licence, or identifiers that don't exist in that jurisdiction.
• The supplier pushes for payment to an offshore account while presenting itself as a mainland manufacturer.
• The receiving company is very new, or has just changed its shareholders or legal representative.

If bank details change mid-order, confirm by phone using a number you found independently, not one given in the same email. Our guide to safe payment methods for Chinese suppliers covers how to structure payments.

What a ChineseCheck Report Can and Cannot Confirm

A ChineseCheck credit report confirms a mainland company's registered details, including its legal name, credit code, status, registered scope, shareholders, former names and registration changes, and its court and enforcement records. Use it to check the company named on your contract and bank details.

It cannot confirm who owns a particular bank account. Only the bank and the account holder can do that. Treat the report as a check on the company, and the matching steps above as your check on the payment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it normal for a Chinese supplier to be paid through a Hong Kong company?

It happens, often for currency or export reasons. It is acceptable only if you can see how the two companies are related and your contract is with the Hong Kong company that receives the money. A mainland licence does not cover a payment to a separate Hong Kong entity.

Can I verify who owns a bank account?

Not through public company records. You can confirm that the account holder name matches your contracting party, ask your bank whether a name check is available for the payment, and confirm changed bank details by phone using an independently sourced number.

What if the supplier says the names differ because of a rename?

Ask for the credit code. A renamed company keeps the same Unified Social Credit Code, and the register shows its former names. If the codes match, it is the same entity.

Does this apply to payments through online marketplaces?

If you pay through a marketplace's own payment system, the marketplace's terms apply. This guide matters most for bank transfers made directly to the supplier.