Align Commerce, a blockchain payment solutions provider based in San Francisco, has announced the launch of their new payment rail that will allow its clients to send near-instant payments to and from China.

The new payment bridge will give import-export businesses an alternative to traditional wire transfers payments, which are extremely slow and costly when compared to payments on the blockchain. AC’s blockchain-based service also gives clients the ability to track the progress of their cross-border payments in real-time.

With this move, Align Commerce has positioned itself to capitalize on the mammoth $555 billion bilateral trade that takes place every year between the US and China.

The announcement was timed to coincide with the Chinese Lunar New Year. The number eight is considered lucky in Chinese culture and this fact played an important role in the decision to launch the new payment service on this day. Marwan Forzley, CEO of Align Commerce, explained further:

“The number eight is traditionally a lucky number in Chinese culture, and we’re hoping to spread the luck around and help small business owners save some money with our ‘$8 for Eight Days’ promotion.”

According to the press release, Align Commerce is offering a flat $8 per transaction fee to mark the launch of the new service. The promotion start today and will run until February 15th.

“Small business owners in the U.S. and China whose businesses depend on reliably sending money overseas can access this promotional offer here”

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