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Mobile payments

Alibaba’s Taobao and Tmall will start making WeChat Pay available for merchants next week. Photo: Shutterstock

Alibaba merchants hail WeChat Pay adoption on Taobao and Tmall

Many hope that the move could lure more consumers from rival platforms that already accept a variety of payment methods.

Many hope that the move could lure more consumers from rival platforms that already accept a variety of payment methods

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Fintech giant Ant Group launches AI personal assistant app in China

WeChat Pay comes to Taobao: Alibaba and Tencent bury the hatchet

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Alibaba-backed e-wallet operator buys Ant Bank Macao

The acquisition makes Ant Bank Macao an indirect subsidiary of AGTech, while Ant Group remains the bank’s second-largest shareholder.

Signage for Ant’s Alipay payment system. Photo: Bloomberg

HKMA fines Tencent’s WeChat Pay unit HK$875,000 for due diligence failures

The HKMA’s investigation covered a period of five years up to October 2021, during which time WeChat Pay failed to implement adequate measures and controls.

China’s internet users near 1.1 billion, driven by short videos

In the first half of 2024, more than a third of China’s new internet users were drawn to short video apps, a government survey shows.

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Payment tokens change the game for Asia-Pacific’s businesses

Visa Token Service boosts sales, accelerates revenues and reduces payment declines for clients including Adyen, Afterpay and Foodpanda.

Payment token technology has significantly improved the speed and convenience of transactions for businesses and consumers in the Asia-Pacific region. Photo: Shutterstock

Opinion | How China can make life better for foreign and domestic tourists alike

Refining entry policies, mobile payment systems and rail travel can help make the mainland an easier and more welcoming travel destination.

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Letters | Hong Kong must not mix up ‘check-in’ and ‘in-depth’ tourism

Readers discuss the limits of social media-driven ‘check-in tourism’, the real reason some Hong Kong businesses don’t take digital payments, and breaking up the DSE exam into two.

Tencent profit jumps 82% on back of strong video gaming, ad growth

Tencent’s profit grew to US$6.6 billion in the second quarter, while revenue rose 8 per cent to US$22.5 billion.

Signage for Tencent Holdings outside the company’s headquarters in Shenzhen on April 17, 2024. Photo: Bloomberg

Tencent’s WeChat keeps fine balance as everyday app and public-service platform

With more than 1.3 billion monthly active users, WeChat’s every technical update and policy change are closely scrutinised on the mainland.

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WeChat, marketed as Weixin on the mainland, is a well-entrenched online tool for everyday life in the world’s second-largest economy. Photo: Shutterstock

Opinion | China’s tourism policy must now go beyond visa-free travel

China must make it easier for foreigners to experience the country and citizens to travel abroad if it wants to reconnect with the world.

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Alipay drives evolution of contactless payments in China with new tap-and-pay service

Alipay expects its Tap! service, which is being rolled out in major cities across mainland China, to ‘expedite in-store mobile payments’.

Ant Group-backed Paytm gets India’s nod to invest in payments arm

The approval, which still has to be vetted by the finance ministry, will remove the main stumbling block to the unit, Paytm Payment Services, resuming normal business operations.

A sign of Paytm’s mobile payment technology at a roadside shop in Mumbai on 6 February 2024. Photo: EPA-EFE

Hong Kong’s Octopus to waive transfer fees for first HK$10,000 made by merchants

E-payment service provider to introduce threshold from August 1, as part of efforts to reduce financial pressure on service users.

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Octopus has said the move aims to support small businesses. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Fintech giant Ant Group spins off database firm as Alibaba affiliates take stake

A shareholder restructuring for OceanBase, which develops the database tech behind Alipay, gives 35 companies a stake, paving the way to a possible public listing

Quelled by cashless: China’s bank branches, ATMs dwindle in land of e-payments

Some bank customers in China have been warned about trying to withdraw the daily limit of 20,000 yuan without making an appointment to ensure that their branch has the cash on hand.

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China’s ‘super apps’, visa-free travel help send love to Singapore goalie

A Muslim food stall owned by footballer Hassan Sunny has been inundated with gracious Chinese fans who also took advantage of a new visa-free-travel policy with Singapore.

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Singaporean goalie Hassan Sunny’s food stall has been packed with Chinese football fans the last couple of days. Photo: Weibo

Alipay’s latest trick: testing for hair loss in the payment app

The largest mobile wallet in China, operated by Ant Group, has a new mini app that uses AI to assess images of a head and estimate whether a user is balding.

Balenciaga teams with Alipay on US$650 T-shirt, prompting social media ridicule

Spanish luxury fashion brand Balenciaga has introduced a 4,700 yuan T-shirt that displays only its own name and the Alipay logo.

Tencent’s WeChat Pay expands coverage to the Maldives

The Chinese internet giant aims to expand the coverage of WeChat Pay in the Maldives to 8,000 merchants by the end of this year.

A bird’s-eye view of Male, capital of the Maldives. Photo: Anadolu via Getty Images

Opinion | China welcomes foreigners. It just needs policies to make that clear

China is expanding visa-free travel but more can be done to make public transport, lodging and tourist attractions more accessible to foreigners. An English QR guide at ports of entry or one-stop payment cards can go a long way towards boosting inbound travel.

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Tourists pose for a group photo at Universal Beijing Resort on January 27. Access to some public places in mainland China can be difficult without prior registration or showing some kind of identification. Photo: VCG/Getty Images

Opinion | What kind of hi-tech tourism hub has taxis that can’t take card payments?

Most taxis in Hong Kong can still only take cash while popular apps like Uber are harassed by the government. And that’s not a good look for a city with hi-tech ambitions aiming to attract big-spending international travellers.

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Hong Kong opens e-CNY pilot programme to whole city, no mainland account needed

Roll-out provides a safe, convenient means of payment for Hongkongers spending in mainland China and mainland users in Hong Kong, HKMA says.

Visa payment tokens make digital commerce safer, simpler and smarter

Global payment network Visa says use of its digital tokens has led to a rise of over U$2 billion in revenue for Asia-Pacific merchants and a reduction in fraud.

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Merchants can expect seamless payments when they tap on tokenisation technology as its unique digital identifiers, or tokens, ensure uninterrupted payments even when customers’ card credentials change. Photo: Shutterstock

Foreigners spend 700% more on Alipay in China over Labour Day holiday

Beijing has introduced measures aimed at boosting inbound tourism, including visa-free travel for a number of European and Southeast Asian countries.

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Spending through Alipay from foreigners in China saw a huge surge over the recent Labour Day holiday period. Photo: Shutterstock

China’s emerging markets ties are huge opportunity for B2B payments space: Ebanx

The Brazilian financial technology company is banking on demand for payment digitisation in the business-to-business space in China and increased adoption of digital payments in India.

Destinations known | Cash or cashless, China lets foreign tourists know it wants them to spend

With overseas visitors struggling to go cashless in China, mobile payment app providers have worked to make it easier for them, and the central bank has told businesses to still accept cash payments.

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Mobile payments
Cash is history. Whether its ordering groceries from our smartphone or using it to pay for the bus, these companies and services are changing the way we pay for goods and services. 
last updated:
9 September, 2024
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