Tycoons Li Ka-shing, Jack Ma team up to expand mobile payments in Hong Kong

Hong Kong mogul’s CK Hutchison and Ma’s Ant Financial establish joint venture to expand Alipay’s mobile wallet and payment service in the city

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A shop assistant tests AlipayHK at a store in Hong Kong after its launch in May. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 9:00pm, 26 Sep 2017Updated: 8:57pm, 3 Jul 2018

The scope of mobile phone payments in Hong Kong is about to reach a whole new level, thanks to a partnership between two of Greater China’s best-known tycoons.

Hong Kong’s richest person, Li Ka-shing, and Chinese internet entrepreneur Jack Ma Yun are joining forces in a new venture that will expand the reach of digital payment services.

CK Hutchison Holdings, Li’s flagship conglomerate, and the Ma-controlled Ant Financial Services Group, parent of online payment service Alipay, on Tuesday said they were forming a strategic partnership to bring so-called digital wallet services to more consumers in Hong Kong.

The two companies will form a 50-50 joint venture to integrate online and offline Hong Kong dollar payments under the AlipayHK brand, which was introduced earlier this year. The agreement will make the AlipayHK service available in CK Hutchison’s vast network of shops.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma speaking at a conference hosted by the company in Detroit, US, in June, 2017. Photo: Xinhua

“By leveraging CK Hutchison’s extensive market presence and combining its commercial experience with Ant Financial’s technology expertise, we will bring great benefits not only to our telecoms, retail, and other customers of the group, but also to all businesses in Hong Kong,” said Canning Fok Kin-ning, co-managing director of CK Hutchison, in a statement on Tuesday.

Ant Financial rolled out AlipayHK’s mobile wallet and payments app in the city in May, heating up competition in the market against Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, Android Pay and Tencent Holdings’ WeChat Wallet service.

It attracted more than 100,000 active users in the first two weeks after launch. The mobile app is now accepted in about 4,000 retail outlets in the city.

In Hong Kong, CK Hutchison has more than 600 stores selling everything from telecommunications, food and electronics to wine, and health and beauty products. Households using utilities provided by Ck Hutchison’s affiliated companies will also be able to pay using AlipayHK.