- In support of Hong Kong's new mega tourism and commerce drive,
Alipay+ now enables users of 14 leading overseas mobile wallets and
bank apps from 9 countries and regions to make seamless payment in
Hong Kong from their home apps. This represents the largest number
of international payment apps introduced at the city’s offline
commercial network through cross-border cooperation at one
time.
- Alipay+ and leading wallet partners have established a joint
mechanism for customer services in Hong Kong to support partners in
improving cross-border payment experiences, enhancing operational
efficiency, and providing better services to global digital wallet
users and merchants through operational collaboration and product
innovation.
Users of 14 popular overseas e-wallets from 9 countries and
regions can now make payments in Hong Kong using their home apps
through Alipay+, a suite of cross-border mobile payment and
digitalization technology solutions operated by Ant
International.
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Users of 14 popular overseas e-wallets
from 9 countries and regions can now make payments in Hong Kong
using their home apps through Alipay+ (Photo: Business Wire)
This covers a population of approximately over 1.2 billion,
allowing them to enjoy a safe and seamless payment experience in
“Asia’s World City” as the number of inbound tourists to Hong Kong
continues to rise.
Powered by Alipay+, users of these popular e-wallets will enjoy
smooth payment experience with transparent and competitive exchange
rates in Hong Kong whenever they encounter the Alipay+ / AlipayHK
logo at the merchants in the city. Local merchants, especially
small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), can seamlessly accept
payments from 14 global e-wallet operators through their existing
AlipayHK payment codes, thereby further expanding their businesses
without the needs of any additional investment.
Popular e-wallets and bank apps newly brought to the city by
Alipay+ include MPay (Macao SAR, China), Changi Pay
and OCBC Digital (Singapore), GCash and
HelloMoney (The Philippines), Hipay (Mongolia),
Kakao Pay, Naver Pay and Toss Pay (South
Korea), MyPB by Public Bank Berhad and Touch 'n Go
eWallet (Malaysia), TrueMoney (Thailand), and
Tinaba (Italy). Similar to Alipay (Chinese mainland),
these newly enabled wallets are now accepted at over 90% of the
local outlets in Hong Kong.
“Hong Kong is known for its breathtaking sceneries, vibrant city
and community life, and the east-meet-west culture, as well as
shopping, food, sightseeing, and public services, an exciting place
that any globetrotters shouldn't miss,” said Venetia Lee,
CEO of AlipayHK and Greater China General Manager of Ant
International.
“When we pay like locals, we can travel and experience the
culture like locals. We are so excited to help users of our 14
wallet partners to expand their presence to over 90% of local
merchants through AlipayHK’s network. This allows hassle-free
payments, promotes the development of Hong Kong's tourism industry,
and helps local merchants enhance the effectiveness of their
promotional activities through digital technology,” said Lee.
This represents the largest number of international payment apps
introduced to the city’s offline commercial network through
cross-border cooperation at a single time. In the meanwhile,
Alipay+ and its wallet partners have also announced to create a
joint mechanism on customer services -- Alipay+ Service
Collaboration Mechanism -- in Hong Kong to support partners in
improving cross-border payment experiences, enhancing operational
efficiency, and providing better services to global digital wallet
users and merchants through operational collaboration and product
innovation.
Since 2023, Hong Kong has seen a continued growth of inbound
travelers following the launch of global campaigns by the Hong Kong
Tourism Board (HKTB) to welcome visitors from all around the world.
In 2023, more than 34 million travelers visited Hong Kong1, and in
the first quarter of 2024, a total of 11.23 million visitor
arrivals were recorded in. This represents 1.5 times year-on-year
increment and demonstrates the continued and gradual growth of
visitor arrivals2.
“Hong Kong is a world-class tourism destination. As the city's
tourism promotion organization, the Hong Kong Tourism Board
attracts visitors to Hong Kong through various global promotions
and marketing initiatives. We hope the trade can capture the
opportunities brought along by visitors and roll out new products
to enhance visitors’ experience in Hong Kong together and stimulate
consumption to maximize the contribution of the tourism industry to
the economy,” said Ms Becky Ip, Deputy Director of the
Hong Kong Tourism Board, who joined the launch to celebrate the
largest cross-border mobile payment project the city has seen.
(Becky Ip, Deputy Executive Director, Hong Kong Tourism Board
(5th from right) and Kang Sang Ho, Managing Director, Shilla Travel
Retail (HK) Limited (5th from left) joined Venetia Lee, CEO of
AlipayHK and Greater China General Manager of Ant International
(Center), and major international e-wallets leaders to celebrate
the launch of the new phase of Alipay+ in Hong Kong.)
Mr Kang Sang Ho, Managing Director of Shilla Travel
Retail (HK) Limited, said, “We are excited to be the first
travel retailer to introduce Alipay+ to Hong Kong. We can now offer
a more seamless and fruitful shopping experience to our customers
and bring “Retail-tainment” to real life. Foreseeing the strong
return of air passengers, we are confident that there will be a
promising growth in our sales through the strategic partnership
with Alipay+.”
“As Alipay+ helps more payment partners expand into larger
markets, we must always uphold our shared commitments to consumers
and merchants, and support our partners to provide more reliable,
smooth and high-quality experiences for the cross-border users.
Through this proactive Alipay+ Service Collaboration Mechanism, we
can more efficiently solve problems, create greater user values,
and help partners improve their operational efficiency,” said
Jake Xue, General Manager for Global Business Service and
Support, Ant International.
“Hong Kong is one of the most beloved destinations to Korean
tourists. We are happy to hear that Kakao Pay users can continue
their convenient payment experience in Hong Kong in the same way as
in Korea. Through this expansion, we expect to provide a
high-quality payment experience for both Korean users and Hong Kong
merchants,” said Won-Keun Shin, CEO of Kakao Pay, South
Korea.
“We have been cooperating with Alipay+ to ensure that digital
payments take root around the world and will continue innovation
together,” said Shin.
“Hong Kong is one of the most popular tourist destinations for
Mongolians. Mongolian travelers benefit from visa-free entry,
making it an attractive spot to visit. We are thrilled about the
official launch of Alipay+ in Hong Kong, offering our users the
convenience of paying with their home wallet,” said Saikanjargal
Enkh-Amgalan, CEO of Hipay, Mongolia.
Alan Ni, CEO of TNG eWallet, Malaysia, conveyed his
appreciation, stating, “We are pleased to be recognized as one of
Alipay+’s esteemed International eWallet partners. Through this
collaboration, TNG eWallet users can conveniently make payments and
immerse themselves in new cultures, such as the vibrant streets of
Hong Kong, all thanks to Alipay+. Since the introduction of our
overseas QR payment feature in Hong Kong in October 2023, we've
observed steady growth that underscores our commitment to serving
our users as the preferred eWallet in Malaysia. We remain dedicated
to ensuring our users feel supported wherever they go, equipped
with a familiar eWallet experience that truly makes them feel like
they're experiencing life like a local.”
Addressing the launch of cross-border payment in Hong Kong,
Monsinee Nakapanant, Co-President of Ascend Money, the operator
of TrueMoney, Thailand, said, “Hong Kong has always been ranked
in the list of top destinations for Thai travelers due to its
vibrant city life, shopping opportunities, culinary experiences,
and iconic attractions. Almost half a million Thais travel to Hong
Kong each year. We feel thankful for Alipay+’s expansive network
and are excited to include Hong Kong as one of our cross-border
footprint and destinations, where Thais can use their home wallet
to pay with ease, convenience, and greater peace of mind.”
“Our partnership with Alipay+ has significantly expanded the
number of countries in which our customers can use OCBC Digital to
make cross-border payments. Our customers’ expenditure in Greater
China, including Hong Kong, has almost doubled since six months
ago. In Hong Kong, transaction value in March was 5 times higher
compared to February, most likely due to the school holidays. These
figures show that our OCBC Digital users see value in using the app
to make cross-border payments, and our tie-up with Alipay+ has
enabled them to do so without having to exchange cash or download
additional e-wallet apps”, said Sunny Quek, Head of Global
Consumer Financial Services, OCBC, Singapore.
Sun Ho, Chairman and CEO of Macau Pass, Macao SAR, said:
“I am very delighted to see that through collaboration with
Alipay+, our e-wallet MPay enables residents of Macao to enjoy a
seamless cross-border mobile payment experience in Hong Kong
without the need for currency exchange, thus greatly enhancing the
convenience and security of payments. This significantly enhances
the convenience and security of payments and also meets the needs
for cross-border financial transactions within the Guangdong-Hong
Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. MPay is committed to expanding in
electronic payment services, lifestyle services, and marketing
technology services, continuously opening up and enriching the
application scenarios of cross-border mobile wallet payments,
allowing the world to gain a deeper understanding of the inclusive
ecosystem and vitality of Macao's digital economy.”
“We are thrilled to further strengthen our bond with a
world-class partner like Alipay+. The launch of the Alipay+ service
in Hong Kong marks a significant step in our strategic plan and
underscores our commitment to a key market in the global economy.
This partnership not only reaffirms Tinaba as the leading European
operator but also distinguishes us as the sole provider in Italy of
this advanced technology. Thanks to this collaboration, our Italian
clients can now directly access the largest mobile payment
ecosystem in Asia, straight from our app,” states Matteo Arpe,
Chairman of Tinaba, Italy.
“As we see Filipino travelers to Hong Kong reach pre-pandemic
levels, our enhanced partnership with Alipay+ couldn’t have come at
a better time. This makes GCash the best way to pay not only in the
Philippines but also in Hong Kong as we offer real-time forex
rates, no service fees, as well as deals and discounts,” said
Paul Albano, General Manager of GCash International, The
Philippines.
Jae-Ho Choi, Head of Toss Pay Business, South Korea,
stated, “Toss Pay now provides more than 19 million monthly active
users with an easy and seamless offline payment service in 49
countries and regions, including Hong Kong. With a strong
partnership with Alipay+, Toss Pay will expand its business in the
global payment sector.”
“As the outbound tourism on the Chinese mainland is showing
strong growth momentum, in 2024, we have collaborated with millions
of merchants worldwide to continuously launch new campaigns and
offerings to enrich users’ payment experience and help merchant
partners’ business growth. From May 1, we will also start allowing
Alipay users to obtain energy at the in-app mini program Ant Forest
when they take public transport with their Alipay app in Hong Kong,
on the backdrop of our continued endeavor to enable sustainable
travels among Chinese tourists when traveling to all over the
world,” said Huang Ya’nan, Head of Outbound Travel,
Alipay.
Introduced by Ant International in 2020, Alipay+ now connects
over 88 million merchants in 57 countries and regions to 1.5
billion consumer accounts across more than 25 e-wallets and bank
apps, allowing consumers to travel and pay hassle-free globally,
and merchants to expand cross-border consumer engagement and
digital marketing.
The service also builds on Alipay+’s extensive regional
partnerships, including collaborations with national QR schemes
including Singapore’s SGQR, Malaysia’s PayNet, South Korea’s
ZeroPay, Sri Lanka's LankaPay and Cambodia's KHQR.
From online to offline, digital payments powered by Alipay+ are
widely accepted by key merchants from Asian and European markets,
spanning sectors such as food & beverage (F&B), tourism and
hospitality, retail and transportation.
In addition to Hong Kong, Alipay+ partner wallets have already
been accepted at various major global destinations including the
Chinese mainland and Macao SAR, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, The
Philippines, South Korea, Japan, Europe and the Middle East.
Ant Group now offers 2 mobile payment alternatives for overseas
visitors in the Chinese mainland. A total of 11 overseas e-wallets
and bank apps have already been enabled for payment at Alipay+’s
extensive network of 80 million merchants in the Chinese
mainland.
Travelers may also choose to bind major international bank
cards, including Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Discover®, and Diners Club
International, to an Alipay app to access a rich array of local
Alipay services from shopping, dining, ride-hailing to public
transportation while in the Chinese mainland, without needing a
local bank account or phone number.
AlipayHK, the most popular e-wallet in Hong Kong with about 4
million active users, is widely accepted at more than 90% of local
offline outlets for seamless payments.
About Ant International
Headquartered in Singapore, Ant International powers the future
of global commerce with digital innovation for everyone and every
business to thrive. In close collaboration with partners, we
support merchants of all sizes worldwide to realize their growth
aspirations through a comprehensive range of tech-driven digital
payment and financial services solutions.
About Alipay+
Alipay+ is a suite of cross-border mobile payment and
digitalization technology solutions that help connect global
merchants to consumers. Consumers enjoy seamless payment and a
broad choice of deals using their preferred payment methods while
travelling abroad. Small and medium-sized businesses may use
Alipay+ digital tools to enhance efficiency and achieve
omni-channel growth.
1
https://www.discoverhongkong.com/content/dam/dhk/intl/corporate/newsroom/press-release/hktb/2024/01-2023-Full-Year-Arrivals-E.pdf
2
https://www.discoverhongkong.com/content/dam/dhk/intl/corporate/newsroom/press-release/hktb/2024/04-March-Arrivals-E.pdf
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Media Inquiries Li Tao tao.l@antgroup.com