Global

Alipay Bears Cost of System Error That Applied Discounts to User Transactions

South China Morning Post

"Alipay, China’s leading mobile payments platform, will bear the expense from unexpected losses that it incurred on Thursday, when a system error gave a 20 per cent discount to an undisclosed number of user transactions."

Tags: China

Global

Beijing Introduces Dedicated Mobile Payments Devices for Foreign Visitors

NFCW

"Travellers arriving at Beijing Capital Airport are now able to rent a dedicated mobile payments and local communications device from a service desk in the Terminal 3 arrivals hall, making it quick and easy to access local mobile payments services during their visit to China."

Tags: China

Global

Chinese Organized Crime’s Latest U.S. Target: Gift Cards

ProPublica

"Chinese crime rings already dominate the illegal marijuana trade in the U.S. and launder cocaine and heroin profits. Now a federal task force is investigating their role in a burgeoning form of gift card fraud."

Tags: China

Global

Hong Kong FPS to Enable Small Cross-Border Payments with Mainland China by Mid-2025

Fintech Hong Kong

"The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has announced plans to connect the Hong Kong FPS with mainland China’s Internet Banking Payment System (IBPS) this year, enabling small cross-border transactions using mobile phone numbers."

Tags: China Hong Kong

Global

XTransfer Officially Receives MPI License from the Monetary Authority of Singapore

PR Newswire

"XTransfer, the World's Leading & China's No.1 B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform, was granted the Major Payment Institution (MPI) License under the Payment Services Act 2019 by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This significant milestone strengthens XTransfer's leading position in the B2B cross-border payments industry."

Tags: China

Global

Laos and China to Introduce QR Code System Connecting Their Payment Networks

Travel Daily Media

"Laos’ Lao National Payment Network Company Limited (LAPNet) and China’s UnionPay International (UPI) formally signed an agreement to introduce a QR code-based system connecting the two countries’ payment networks."

Tags: China

Global

Unionpay and Weixin Pay Expand Payment Options for Tourists in China

IBS Intelligence

"UnionPay International and Weixin Pay have partnered to allow users of international UnionPay-powered wallets to scan Weixin Pay payment codes in the Chinese mainland. Eight wallets are now able to offer this feature, namely BoC Pay from Bank of China (Hong Kong), Octopus, PayMe by HSBC, and Tap & Go in Hong Kong SAR; Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking and K PLUS from KASIKORNBANK in Thailand; Naver Pay in South Korea; and ICBC Mobile Banking (ICBC Pay) in Malaysia."

Tags: China

Global

China’s Digital Yuan Adoption Faces ‘Bottlenecks,’ Says Director of Shanghai-Based University

Crypto News

"China‘s central bank digital currency — also known as the digital yuan — is still encountering “bottlenecks” in user adoption, driven by reluctance and competition from platforms like Alipay, says Charles Chang, director of the Fintech Research Centre at Fudan University in Shanghai."

Tags: China

Global

Ant International Drives AI in Cross-Border Payments to Boost Global Expansion

South China Morning Post

Ant International is deploying artificial intelligence to improve cross-border payments for small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) worldwide. The AI model predicts currency exchange rates on an hourly basis for both inbound and outbound transactions, helping businesses reduce transaction costs and better allocate resources.

Tags: China

Global

Tenpay Global & TerraPay to Enable International Money Transfers to more than one billion Weixin and WeChat Users

PR Newswire

"TerraPay, a global leader in cross-border money movement, has announced a strategic partnership with Tenpay Global, Tencent's cross-border payment platform renowned for its innovative financial services through the Weixin ecosystem."

Tags: China

Global

One in Eight Chinese People Have a Digital RMB Wallet

Ledger Insights

"Mu Changchun, head of the Digital Currency Research Institute at the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), provided an update on the roll out and adoption of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot. As of July there were 180 million personal wallets, which represents about one in eight of the 1.4 billion Chinese population. The cumulative transaction volume reached RMB 7.3 trillion."

Tags: China

Global

China’s 2024 National Day Golden Week Sees 60% Rise in Outbound Travel Transactions and 120% Surge in Inbound Spending YoY Via Alipay

Business Wire

"During the 2024 National Day Golden Week, Alipay recorded a significant increase in both China’s outbound and inbound tourism spending. In China, international travelers spent 120% more year-on-year using their international card-enabled Alipay accounts at merchants during the first four days of the National Day holiday. Alipay Tap! saw transaction volume increase by 130% during the holiday compared with the same period in September."

Tags: China

Companies Global

Alibaba’s Taobao Introduces Tencent’s WeChat Pay, Set to Add JD Logistics

China Daily

"Starting Friday, consumers shopping on Alibaba's Taobao platform can now use Tencent's WeChat Pay for transactions, according to an official statement from Taobao. The new payment option allows users to complete purchases with WeChat Pay, and subsequent updates will enable users to access transaction records and bills directly within the WeChat app, WeChat Pay said."

Tags: China WeChat Pay

Companies Global

Worldline Partners With Bochk to Launch Open Platform Card Solution in Hong Kong

PR News Wire

"Worldline announced a partnership with the Bank of China (Hong Kong), making it Worldline's first customer of its open platform card solution Paysuite Essential Edition (Previously named Cardlite) in Hong Kong."

Tags: China Hong Kong Worldline

Global

China Mulls How to Incentivize CBDC Adoption by Payment Providers, Consumers

Ledger Insights

"We recently reported that China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eCNY, processed $56 billion in transactions in a single month. It reached a cumulative volume of RMB 7 trillion, which is nearing the $1 trillion mark ($932 billion to be precise). However, a fair proportion is business usage. Stories continue to circulate about a lack of consumer enthusiasm for the digital RMB."

Tags: China

Global

International Visitors to Beijing Can ‘Tap & Go’ With Mastercard Cards to Pay For Rides on Beijing Urban Rail Transit

Mastercard

"Supported by the PBC, the Beijing government, and the city’s urban rail transit system, Mastercard has become the first international payment brand in Chinese mainland to complete system integration and successfully launch the 'Tap & Go' feature for urban rail transit"

Tags: China

Global

Tencent’s WeChat Pay Brings Palm Payments to Macau, Targeting Mainland Chinese Tourists

South China Morning Post

"WeChat Palm Pay lets mainland tourists pay by scanning their hand in shops located in hotels under the Galaxy Entertainment Group"

Tags: China

Global

Alibaba to Allow Payment Through Tencent’s WeChat Pay for the First Time on E-commerce Apps

CNBC

"Chinese tech giant Alibaba said that its core Taobao and Tmall e-commerce platforms will now allow payment through Tencent’s WeChat app for the first time. Previously, Alibaba’s Chinese e-commerce sites only accepted limited payment options and pushed WeChat Pay rival Alipay as one of the main ways to pay."

Tags: China

Global

XTransfer and EBANX Partner to Facilitate B2B Trade Payments in Latin America

PR News Wire

"XTransfer, China's top B2B cross-border trade payment platform, and EBANX, the leading payment platform connecting global companies with customers in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, announced a strategic partnership aimed at streamlining B2B trade payments in Latin America."

Tags: Africa Asia China Latin America

Global

LianLian Global and Guavapay Announce New Global Payment Experience

PR Asia

"LianLian Global and Guavapay have signed a cooperation agreement to jointly create a convenient, efficient and secure global payment experience. The partnership enables people to send money to China through Guavapay's payments app, MyGuava ."

Tags: China

Companies Global

China Asks Visa, Mastercard to Cut Card Fees

"China is pushing for Visa and Mastercard to lower their bank card transaction fees in the country to encourage spending by foreign visitors, Bloomberg News reported, on Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter. The Payment & Clearing Association of China is proposing lowering the fees charged on foreign card transactions to 1.5% from between 2% and 3%, the report said."

Tags: China Mastercard Visa

Global

XTransfer and Banking Circle Announce Strategic Partnership

Banking Circle

"XTransfer, the leading B2B cross-border payment platform from China, and Banking Circle have entered into a strategic partnership. This collaboration aims to reduce the cost and processing time of cross-border payments for XTransfer’s clients, particularly benefiting Chinese suppliers with significant markets in Europe and the Middle East."

Tags: China Europe Middle East

Global

China May Impose Similar Regulations for WeChat as India’s UPI Rules

Business-Standard

"China is planning to introduce a new mobile payment regulation aimed at reducing the market share of Tencent Holdings' WeChat app, similar to efforts made by the National Payments Corporation of India to curb Google Pay and Phone's growing dominance in the market."

Tags: China

Global

Chinese Workers Paid in CBDC Are Cashing It Out for Real Money

Cointelegraph

"Some participants of China’s CBDC pilot program are reportedly hesitant to hold onto the digital yuan, citing a range of concerns with using the state-backed digital currency."

Tags: China

Global

Japan to Collaborate on Chinese Payment Services With Joint QR Code

Nikkei Asia

"Efforts are underway between Japan and other Asian countries to allow mutual access and use of QR code payment services that are popular in their own countries."

Tags: China Japan

Global

Bank of China Lets Taxi Drivers Accept Central Bank Digital Currency Payments on NFC Mobile Phones

NFCW

"The Bank of China is conducting a pilot in the city of Shenzhen of a new service that makes it possible for merchants to accept contactless digital currency payments on standard NFC mobile phones."

Tags: China

Global

China Digital Currency: Qingdao Metro Facilitates E-CNY Payment Even When User Balance Is Too Low

South China Morning Post

"China’s coastal city of Qingdao in Shandong province has launched a new “deferred payment” feature for metro passengers wanting to use digital fiat money: they can exit the station even if the wallet balance is not enough."

Tags: China

Global

Digital Yuan Now Used to Complete Car Prepurchase Payments

Bitcoin News

"The digital yuan, China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), is being used as a security element in car prepurchase payment settlements."

Tags: China

Global

China Sets Final Rules for Alipay, Wechat Pay and Their Peers

Nikkei Asia

"China has approved regulations on nonbank payment institutions, seeking to curb risks in the booming sector by tightening supervision over digital payment service providers including Alipay and WeChat Pay."

Tags: China

Global

UAE Completes First Cross-Border Digital Dirham CDBC Payment Worth $13.6M to China

Yahoo Finance

"The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has successfully completed the first cross-border payment using the Digital Dirham."

Tags: China UAE