Late on February 7, Tencent’s Yuanbao account announced an app update that restores sharing functionality for Yuanbao red packets, adding a one‑click option to send links into “Yuanbao Pai” after upgrading to version 2.57.0. Reporters testing the 2.57.0.260 iOS build confirmed that Yuanbao red‑packet links could be shared into Yuanbao Pai, and that WeChat began allowing users to copy Yuanbao red‑packet passcodes in private chats during tests conducted between 21:29 and 21:49 that evening.
The change reverses a restriction that took effect on the afternoon of February 6, when red‑packet passcodes from Yuanbao and the related app Qianwen became non‑copyable once they appeared in WeChat chats. That earlier behaviour had prevented recipients from copying claim codes out of a WeChat conversation, complicating how third‑party products distribute promotional red packets and viral giveaways through China’s dominant messaging app.
At first glance the technical tweak is small, but red packets remain a culturally and commercially potent mechanism in China’s mobile ecosystem. During the Lunar New Year period especially, the ability to share clickable links and copyable passcodes fuels rapid peer‑to‑peer distribution and helps new services attract users. Restoring copy functionality makes it easier for Yuanbao and similar services to use WeChat as a vector for growth and engagement.
The episode highlights persistent tensions in China’s platform landscape over interoperability and content controls. WeChat has in recent years used a mix of automated filtering and design choices to limit certain external links or text‑based passcodes — moves justified by security and UX concerns but that also functionally shape how rival apps can recruit users inside WeChat’s walled garden.
Restoring copyability may reflect a technical fix, a policy recalibration by Tencent, or a reaction to user friction at a time when viral distribution matters most. It also serves as a reminder that small interface rules — whether preventing one tap from copying text or blocking a link preview — can have outsized consequences for how services spread, monetise and compete in China’s platform ecosystem.
For international observers, the incident illustrates how platform design decisions by a handful of dominant firms shape the fortunes of adjacent startups and features. Even modest UX restrictions can be political and economic levers, while their reversal can be a quick way to unclog growth channels during peak promotional windows.