Alipay steps up mobile payments expansion in Australian stores
According to Tourism Australia, Chinese tourists in the country spend about HK$46,248 on average during each visit
Alipay, the Chinese online payments powerhouse, is gearing up to further expand into Australia’s retail sector through its collaboration with Quest Payment Systems, as mainland visitors account for record spending in the country.
Melbourne-based Quest said on Wednesday it had become the first payments technology provider to implement a large-scale, in-store roll-out of the Alipay mobile payments system to retailers in Australia, the sixth largest trading partner of mainland China.
The announcement followed Alipay’s reported expansion into Europe. Parent Ant Financial Services Group has said it will work with BNP Paribas in France, Britain’s Barclays, UniCredit of Italy and Switzerland’s Six Group to help establish Alipay, China’s largest payments platform, across the continent’s vast retail market.
In October, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Alipay forged an agreement to broaden adoption of the payments system for domestic consumers shopping on Alibaba Group’s online retail platforms, and for in-store purchases at Australian stores.
It’s simple, intuitive and ensures that the customer can see exactly what their purchase will cost in both Australian dollars and their local currency
Ant Financial is an affiliate of New York-listed Alibaba, which owns the South China Morning Post.
