Verify wealth management products in the bank's official app or portal before purchasing; unlisted products recommended by staff are likely unauthorized "flying orders"

When bank employees secretly pitch products that are neither issued nor formally authorized for distribution by the bank, this practice is known as a "flying order" (飞单 / unauthorized private placement). Legitimate agency-distributed products can only be sold in designated official banking channels and must be searchable in official product registries. If a product cannot be found in the bank's official app or portal, do not purchase it. If you are defrauded by an unauthorized placement, banks routinely disclaim liability as an employee's private act; courts often assign comparative negligence, leaving victims to absorb 40% to 50% of the financial loss after protracted litigation.

Cost

Zero cost. Takes only a few minutes to search the product name or registration code in the bank's official mobile app or branch query terminal. The social hurdle is simply telling the relationship manager: "Let me check this in the official app first."

Benefit

Under the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA) 2025 Measures for the Administration of Agency Sales of Commercial Banks (NFRA Decree [2025] No. 6, effective October 1, 2025), strict institutional mandates govern agency sales: (1) Banks distributing third-party products must do so exclusively within designated sales zones in physical branches or dedicated sections on official online platforms (web and mobile apps). (2) Banks must provide public query tools within their proprietary channels detailing whether the product is distributed on agency, its asset category, and the issuing institution. (3) Distributed products may never be commingled with regular bank deposits or proprietary bank wealth products. Promotional materials must conspicuously display on page 1: "This product is issued and managed by [Partner Institution]; [Distributing Bank], as agency distributor, assumes no investment or redemption payment liability." (4) Staff sales qualifications must be verified and posted in branches; dual audio-video recording ("double recording") is mandatory for on-premise sales. (5) Both institutions and personnel are expressly prohibited from promoting or selling unapproved third-party products under the bank's name. In a representative case publicized by the Beijing Third Intermediate People's Court (2022), a bank wealth manager pitched a private equity fund as an exclusive high-yield bank product, directing a client to transfer 1.2M RMB to a third-party fund. The fund collapsed and the principal went to prison. The court held that because the employee utilized working hours, bank premises, and corporate uniform/titles, the bank bore institutional tort liability for inadequate supervision; however, because the investor pursued unrealistic high returns without verifying contract counterparties, comparative fault was applied, splitting losses 50/50. In October 2026, the Supreme People's Court, PBOC, NFRA, and CSRC jointly issued landmark consumer protection precedents (Case No. (2024) Wan 05 Min Zhong 1088), where a securities branch head sold unapproved private funds totaling 1M RMB; the appellate court reversed the initial dismissal, ruling that institutional failure to control employee conduct warranted partial damages, awarding ~577,000 RMB (576,716.97 RMB) to the investor.

Notes

Under Article 1191 of the Civil Code, where an employee causes damage to another party in the execution of work tasks, the employer bears tort liability. Therefore, a bank's defense that "this was an employee's purely private rogue behavior" is not an absolute shield, but your recovery percentage depends heavily on comparative fault. Litigation typically takes 6 to 12 months for first instance plus appeal costs. If misled, file an internal complaint with the bank first, and escalate to the 12378 financial consumer protection hotline (Chapter 5, Rule 43). Remember: even for officially distributed products, the bank acts as an agent and does not guarantee principal redemption. If returns exceed standard market rates by a wide margin, treat as an immediate red flag (Chapter 5, Rule 6). Ensure you know whether you are signing for a deposit or an insurance contract (Chapter 5, Rule 42). For aging parents, enforce a mandatory two-person confirmation rule for major capital expenditures (Chapter 17, Rule 3). Not financial investment advice. Beneficiaries are yourself and aging family members.

Sources · 4

1. National Financial Regulatory Administration (2025). Measures for the Administration of Agency Sales by Commercial Banks (NFRA Order [2025] No. 6, Articles 32, 33, 34, 39, 41, 43, 54). gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/202503/content_70150…
2. Beijing Third Intermediate People's Court (2022-05-08). Micro-Case Study: Who Compensates My Losses When Encountering Wealth Management 'Flying Orders'? bj3zy.bjcourt.gov.cn/article/detail/2022/05/i…
3. Supreme People's Court, People's Bank of China, National Financial Regulatory Administration, China Securities Regulatory Commission (2026-10-12). Typical Cases on Protecting the Legitimate Rights and Interests of Financial Consumers and Investors (Case 3, (2024) Wan 05 Min Zhong 1088). court.gov.cn/zixun/xiangqing/513941.html
4. National People's Congress (2020). Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (Article 1191). flk.npc.gov.cn/detail?id=ff808081729d1efe0172…