China Unionpay, the country’s government-backed card issuer, is working on a service that enables users to have QR codes on their handset screens scanned to make payments, said the National Business Daily.

The service would cover both online and offline mobile payments, according to company insiders.

And Unionpay is talking to banks regarding how to promote the proposed service.

In March, China’s central bank issued a directive to halt plans by Alipay and Tencent to launch services based on QR codes. Both were working in partnership with China’s Citic Bank.

However, it appears that Alipay and some banks are offering such services, despite the directive, and the central bank has not taken any action against them.

At the time, it was reported that the central bank’s decision to block the likes of Alipay was designed to protect China Unionpay from potential competition.