(Yicai Global) Jan. 11 -- Tencent Holdings' new credit scoring system WeChat Pay Credit, set to rival Ant Financial's Sesame Credit, will grade users based on their friendships.

While similar to Sesame Credit, WeChat Pay Credit will base its scores on in-app social relationships, a Tencent employee told state-backed news site The Paper after the firm unveiled the system in Guangzhou on Jan. 9. It is already testing the system in its hometown Shenzhen, Beijing and Shanghai, and expects to take it nationwide by year-end.

A power bank-sharing firm at the release event granted deposit-free rentals to newbies who signed up for the service. Users fill in a quick assessment, accept a service agreement and then, if they have a score of at least 550, will be able to skip the CNY99 (USD14.7) security deposit. The company is already running a similar service in the other cities WeChat Pay Credit is running.

There is no set way to open the service, the report added, saying users can only activate it in scenarios where it is required, like WeChat mini programs. Once active, users can access WeChat Pay Credit via the wallet function.