Alipay, one of the largest payment processors across Asia, is forging strategic partnerships with European banks and other institutions. It is evident that one of the world’s largest payment platforms is looking to expand in an aggressive manner. Among its new partners are BNP Paribas, SIX Payment Services, and Barclays.
Forging The Path To Alipay’s European Expansion
Any self-respecting payment processor in the world wants to make sure that their market share continues to grow. In other words, that means an international expansion is an absolute must at some point. Alipay is no different in this regard, even though the payment provider has been very successful in its native region.
Europe seems to be the primary region of interest for Alipay right now. By forging strategic coalitions with some of Europe’s most prominent banks and other financial service providers, the company is paving the way for their expansion into that part of the world. More competition in the online and mobile payment ecosystem is never a bad thing.
So far, over 450 million active users rely on Alipay for their mobile and online payments on a regular basis. Unfortunately, that functionality will only work in specific regions, despite a growing demand to enable this service in Europe. Alipay has listened to this feedback and set out on an international expansion that will soon cover all of Europe.
The primary objective of this expansion is to allow transactions at point-of-sale terminals executed through scanning a bar code. This method of payment has become the new norm in China and has been somewhat successful in other Asian countries as well. On paper, it makes sense to scan the bar code, as that is what cashiers do as well.
With Chinese tourists spending more and more money abroad every year, it only makes sense to let them use the same payment methods that they have grown so accustomed to in the domestic market. Just last year, Chinese tourists spent a whopping US$215bn while traveling abroad, a number that is expected to rise well above US$300bn in the coming years.
By partnering with the likes of BNP Paribas, Barclays, and SIX Payment Services, Alipay is positioning themselves for a great future across the UK and Europe. It will take some time before this payment method becomes available to all Europeans, but the roll-out will commence as soon as next year.
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