After conquering China, Alipay and WeChat Pay push payment services to taxis outside the mainland
China’s two largest mobile payment platforms are ramping up their international expansion with the goal of simplifying the way Chinese travellers pay cab fare in popular destinations
Alipay and WeChat Pay, China’s two dominant mobile payment platforms, are ratcheting up their expansion plans through separate initiatives that will allow taxis outside the mainland to accept digital payments from Chinese travellers using these services.
Alipay, which counts more than 520 million active users, aims to make taxi payments easier for mainland tourists visiting the United States through its strategic partnership with electronic payment transactions specialist Verifone, Alipay North America president Souheil Badran told the South China Morning Post.
“We believe that by simplifying the payment process, we will help increase use of the transport system in the US for the growing Chinese tourist population,” said Badran.
“Paying for taxis can be one of the most stressful elements of travelling abroad, particularly if you don’t speak the language.”
A unit of Ant Financial Services Group, Alipay recently extended its global partnership with Verifone to allow mainland consumers travelling in New York and Las Vegas to pay for taxis using Alipay’s mobile wallet function.
