The cross-border digital payment provider is looking to provide cash-free and mobile-friendly travel experiences for all Asian tourists coming to mainland China for shopping or travelling, as it allows its AlipayHK users to pay for their metro rides in Shenzhen using their local app.
Optimising travel regulations
China is looking into further optimising its regulations on travel between Hong Kong and mainland starting the first week of January 2023, hoping to attract more tourists and enhancing the overall travelling experience by providing cash-free options for citizens looking to get by through public means of transportation.
At the same time, two of the most popular e-wallets across the Asian continent, South Korea’s Kakao Pay and Malaysia’s Touch ‘nGo have both gained wider acceptances in mainland China ahead of the Hangzhou Asian Games, allowing tourists to pay with their mobile phones for a wide range of services and products. Looking into the future, Alipay+ continues to expand in the continent, aiming to provide mobile-friendly travel experiences and enhance the QR code connectivity as an alternative to cash payments.
Boosted travel experiences for Alipay+’s mobile payment partners
As the demand for travels between mainland Hong Kong to China remains strong and cross-border activities start to get back to normal, the Chinese tech group expects to see a wider adoption of AlipayHK on the Chinese mainland. The payment solution provider was already adopted by millions of citizens across the continent who are eager to return to their international travels.
Powered by Alipay+ solutions, AlipayHK is currently accepted to most of China’s mainland convenient stores, cafes, restaurants, supermarkets, bubble tea shops, hotels, and other tourist spots, allowing customers to scan the same local merchant’s QR code for payment or present their in-app QR code to be scanned by the merchant for payment.
The latest expansion of AlipayHK is part of the company’s broader expansion plan that started in November 2022 that introduced Kakao Pay and Touch ‘nGO e-wallets as payment methods in China mainland, in order to facilitate payments from international travellers.
Alipay+ provides a wide array of global mobile payment and marketing solutions that connect millions of merchants across the Asian continent with multiple e-wallet and payment methods to drive digitalisation and promote a cash-free economy. Globally, Alipay+ covers more than 2.5 million merchants that cover major airports, duty free shops, shopping centres, convenience stores, cafes, restaurants supermarkets, hotels, and others.
