Kakao, Naver, and Toss Pay Payments in China Double in 5 Months

Ant Group Expands Reach by Partnering with 11 Global Platforms Including Korea
Collaborates with Pakistan's Nayapay to Enhance Payment Convenience and Boost Consumption

As the Chinese government and private companies actively work to improve local payment convenience for foreigners, it has been revealed that the payment amount within China using South Korea's Kakao, Naver, and Toss Pay nearly doubled in five months.

Ant Group, a fintech (finance + technology) company affiliated with Alibaba, held the 'Inbound Consumption-Friendly Commercial District Joint Construction Plan Launch Ceremony' on the 8th at SOLANA, a large commercial facility located in Chaoyang District, Beijing. They announced, "As of March, the payment amount within China using Kakao, Naver, and Toss Pay through Alipay Plus has increased about twofold compared to October last year." However, they did not disclose specific payment amount trends or future prospects.

Representatives from Ant Group and Alipay Plus partners held a cooperation announcement event and took a commemorative photo on the 8th at Solana, a large shopping mall located in Chaoyang District, Beijing, China. (Photo by Hyunjung Kim)

Alipay Plus, introduced by Ant Group in 2020, is a global payment network connecting cross-border simple payment providers. It currently connects over 88 million merchants and 1.5 billion consumer accounts across 57 countries and regions, assisting consumers with travel and payments. There are currently 11 global platforms that can be directly used within China.

In South Korea, Kakao, Naver, and Toss Pay have formed partnerships to support payments in major Chinese cities using the existing applications (apps) they used in Korea. Additionally, Ant Group has partnered with AlipayHK (Hong Kong), ChangiPay (Singapore), HiPay (Mongolia), M Pay (Macau), OCBC Digital (Singapore), Touch 'n Go eWallet (Malaysia), TrueMoney (Thailand), and newly disclosed cooperation with NayaPay (Pakistan) on this day.

They plan to improve payment convenience in major Chinese cities by expanding partnerships with electronic payment and card companies such as Visa, Mastercard, JCB, and Diners Club International. Users can link their international payment cards to the Alipay app and use them for shopping, dining, hotel payments, and taxi hailing.

According to Ant Group, as of March, foreign tourists using international payment cards linked to the Alipay app come from about 200 countries and regions. Notably, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the United States, Japan, Thailand, Germany, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Indonesia are among the top 10 countries.

Xue Hongyan, Head of Global Business Services at Ant Group, emphasized, "Smooth payment and consumer experience are very important for overseas travel and extensive cultural and economic exchanges," adding, "We will continue to expand the construction of inbound consumption-friendly commercial districts."

Inshaolong, Vice President of Visa Card and President of China, said, "We are pleased to improve the payment experience of overseas tourists through innovation and joint construction in cooperation with partners," and added, "We believe that a smooth payment experience will help activate the economy and promote communication among individuals, businesses, and local communities."

Meanwhile, Ant Group's efforts are closely related to the government's policy to promote domestic consumption by enhancing payment convenience for foreigners. The People's Bank of China, the central bank, recommended through the Payment and Clearing Association of China (PCAC) that overseas bank card fee rates be adjusted autonomously, and is negotiating with major global card companies to reduce transaction fees to expand merchant acceptance. On the 7th of last month, the State Council of China announced the 'Opinions on Optimizing Payment Services and Enhancing Convenience,' declaring its intention to make payments within China more convenient for foreigners. To this end, they urged major tourist sites, hotels, and restaurants to make it easier for foreigners to link payment platforms and accounts and to support cash payments.