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A leading payments industry news source for more than 17 years. Glenbrook curates the news and keeps you abreast of the important daily headlines in payments.
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July 24, 2018
On the web
China’s Mobile Payment Platforms Are Transforming Online Marketing
TechNode
“In some cases, marketing with the help of mobile payments is beginning to eat away classical online marketing strategies. Chinese businesses have tried many ways to attract users but we can’t neglect that the costs of online promotions have begun to climb, said Ma Zheng, CEO of CJI (创匠信息科技), a company specialized in building mobile payment solutions. The numbers from Adobe’s last year’s study on digital advertising confirm his view. “One year ago, some businesses gave up attracting users online, and they went back to offline to seek opportunities,” Ma told TechNode. “Mobile payments seem to be a great intermediary. The growth from online is limited but there is still growth potential from offline, so businesses started integrating their marketing solutions with mobile payments for new ways of attracting users.””
July 12, 2018
On the web
The Chinese Tourists Will Be WeChat Pay’s Focus For Next Three Years
Jing Travel
“In an unsurprising move, Grace Yin, Director of WeChat Pay’s International Operations, confirmed in an interview that Tencent’s WeChat Pay would continue to focus almost exclusively on Chinese outbound tourists for the next three years. A move abroad would seem to be the logical next step for both Alipay and WeChat Pay, as both platforms have become wildly popular in China and have few avenues to garner more customers domestically. Still, the challenges of integrating the platforms into banking systems and lack of brand recognition outside of China have prompted both companies to continue focusing on Chinese customers. With more Chinese tourists going abroad every year, making sure WeChat Pay is usable abroad makes it more likely that when users return home they will continue using it.”
June 29, 2018
On the wires
99 Ranch Market And CITCON Partner To Deliver Customer-centric Shopping Experience
PR Newswire
“CITCON, the leading cross-border mobile payment company, announced that 99 Ranch Market, the largest Asian supermarket chain in the United States has successfully deployed the CITCON mobile payment and marketing solution, which allows it to accept China’s most preferred payment options Alipay and WeChat Pay, and leverage their marketing channels to better service Chinese customers.”
June 5, 2018
On the web
Alipay Wants To Take The US, But Faces Customer Acceptance Hurdles
Tearsheet
“For more than a decade, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba’s Alipay has dominated the mobile payments market in China. But with competitors like Tencent’s WeChat Pay entering and saturating the space, Alipay is on the lookout for a new market — and is looking west. Starting last year, Alipay worked with payment processor FirstData to integrate its offering across 4 million U.S. retail locations in 2017. This year, that partnership has expanded to 35,000 more merchants including hotels, restaurants and high-end retail stores.”
March 30, 2018
On the web
Alipay offers some lessons on open banking
Euromoney
“China is going cashless and cardless fast, with hundreds of millions of wealthy consumers leaping ahead to mobile wallets and providing some valuable insights for the possible future of open banking in Europe.”
March 23, 2018
On the web
Alipay makes alliance with Openpay in Mexico looking at the rest of America (Translation)
Payment Media
“Alipay, announced today that it will expand its services in America through a strategic alliance with Openpay in Mexico.
Alipay has more than 520 million active users in China, who from now on will be able to use Alipay to buy with the affiliated businesses of Openpay in Mexico. Alipay is the leading payment provider in China and mainly online and mobile payment methods for consumers in that country.”
March 19, 2018
On the wires
New Survey Finds Chinese Tourists Use Mobile Payments More Than Non-Chinese Tourists when Overseas
“Nearly all Chinese travelers (91%) would be more willing to shop and spend at overseas merchants that accepted Chinese mobile payments, according to a new Nielsen report, jointly released by Nielsen and Alipay, which found that 93% of Chinese tourists would use mobile payment overseas if given the option.”
First Data Enables Alipay Acceptance at 35,000 North American Merchants
“The expanded partnership follows a May 2017 announcement unveiling First Data’s plans to integrate Alipay at the point-of-sale across four million U.S. merchant locations. The ongoing rollout includes merchants using First Data’s Clover suite of solutions. Clover, a leading point of sale platform, serves the needs of merchants ranging from food trucks and small retailers to regional coffee houses and even the largest sports stadiums.”
March 5, 2018
On the web
Motion Pay brings Alipay acceptance to Canadian merchants
Mobile Payments Today
“Alipay has announced that its partnership with Motion Pay Technology Inc. has resulted in a significant number of merchants across Canada enabling Alipay acceptance at point-of-sale, according to a press release. Through the partnership, Alipay is now accepted in all major Canadian cities including Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, Banff, among others, and across several categories including retail, restaurants, hospitality, and luxury.”
February 27, 2018
On the web
WeChat, Alipay offer overseas tax refund services to tourists, meaning no more airport queues
South China Morning Post
“The tedious tax refund process at airports and the long wait to get rebates for purchases made on overseas trips may soon be a thing of the past for Chinese tourists. WeChat Pay and Alipay, China’s two biggest mobile payment platforms, have recently forged partnerships with tax refund companies to enable Chinese tourists to obtain rebates on their purchases via their respective mobile apps.”
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