Alipay extends mobile payment services to 300,000 retailers in Japan
- The number of merchants supporting Alipay in Japan has surged to more than 300,000 from about 50,000 in early 2018
- Alipay is expanding in Japan ahead of 2020 Olympics next summer
Ant Financial, the mobile payments affiliate of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, said it has signed up more than 300,000 retailers in Japan to its Alipay service to serve the growing number of Chinese tourists to the country.
The Hangzhou-based firm will not charge access fees in extending its services to more retailers in Japan, it said in a release. The number of merchants that accept Alipay have surged by about six times from about 50,000 in early 2018.
More than 8.3 million Chinese people travelled to Japan in 2018, accounting for 27 per cent of total arrivals, according to Ant. Asia as a region, led by China, has become a major source of tourist spending in Japan, accounting for 86 per cent of total visitors, according to Ant Financial.
Transaction volume in Japan during May 1-4 ranked the fourth across all markets, according to Alipay, registering an increase of 25 per cent from the same period last year. Airports, department stores, pharmacies and convenience stores were among the places that recorded the highest Alipay expenditure.
Alibaba is the parent company of the South China Morning Post.
