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

Global

Hong Kong to Expand e-CNY Pilot

Finance Asia

"HKMA and the PBOC announced further support for the expansion of use cases of the digital yuan in Hong Kong, targeting local consumers and travellers."

Tags: China Hong Kong

Global

Jack Ma’s Alipay Reign Officially Over, IPO Back on Track

Asia Financial

"China’s central bank has agreed that payment app Alipay no longer has a controller after a sweeping business overhaul of Jack Ma’s Ant Group , the fintech giant that owns the app, putting its long-awaited IPO back on track."

Tags: China

Companies Global

China Tightens Rules for Non-Bank Payment Firms Like Alipay

Asia Financial

"China has announced tough rules for non-banking payment institutions amid an ongoing clampdown on the country’s $57 trillion financial sector."

Tags: Alipay China

Global

Chinese Visitors to Singapore Can Use Digital Yuan CBDC

Ledger Insights

Today the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced an agreement with the People’s Bank of China to allow tourists from either country to use the pilot digital yuan, also known as eCNY.

Tags: China Singapore

Companies Global

Mastercard JV Approved to Begin Domestic Payments Processing in China

"Mastercard announced that its joint venture entity, Mastercard NUCC Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., has received formal approval from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and the National Administration of Financial Regulation (NAFR) to commence domestic bankcard clearing activity in China."

Tags: China

Global

PetroChina Completes First International Crude Oil Trade in Digital Yuan: Report

Coindesk

"Chinese oil and gas company PetroChina has completed the first international crude oil trade using the country's central bank digital currency (CBDC), the e-CNY, China Daily reported on Saturday."

Tags: China

Global

China Enables e-CNY Top-Up Using Mastercard and Visa Cards

FinanceFeeds

"The Digital Yuan app in China has been updated to make it easier for tourists to use digital currency during their visits. International tourists can now top up their Digital Yuan wallets using Mastercard or VISA cards before arriving in China."

Tags: China

Global

mBridge CBDC Project Nearing Commercialization

Blockworks

"Eddie Yue, the CEO of Hong Kong’s central bank, expects that the mBridge CBDC project will gradually transition to commercialization. In a keynote speech at the 2023 Bund Summit, he detailed plans for the platform, which China, Thailand, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates are jointly developing in partnership with the Bank of International Settlements."

Tags: China Hong Kong Thailand UAE