![]() In Q1 2017, Alipay’s market share dropped to 54 percent, while WeChat Pay claimed 40 percent.īorn August 2013, WeChat Pay’s domestic success largely stems from the fact that it’s an extension of social networking and IM tool WeChat, which guarantees high-frequency use from users. However, the app is quickly surrendering territory to a new rival-WeChat Pay. It holds over 80 percent of transaction value across China three years ago. Only quick adapters to local markets could win.Īs one of the earliest entrants to the market, the 13-years-old Alipay was practically the sole dominator in China’s mobile payment sector. Going for totally different markets that feature diverse market conditions and user preferences, internet giants may lose some of their competitive advantages and the secret recipe to local success may act as a hurdle in the exotic land. “Alipay may or may not be seen as a potential competitor towards the local banking system in overseas markets as Ant Financial’s domestic success in operation financial products have previously disrupted the traditional banking system in China,” according to Andy. But every other country is challenging for them,” he added.įor Alipay in particular, it may encounter an extra hurdle from the local banking system. The same for Hong Kong as its so close to China. They are able to do it in South Africa because of Naspers, which is a key investor in Tencent. Tencent has local wallets in South Africa and Hong Kong. In many countries, I think it’s most likely impossible. “In order to enable that, they have to partner with local companies. That’s quite ambitious because there’s a lot of regulations,” commented Matthew Brennan, co-founder of China Channel. “Both Alipay and WeChat Pay are going after tourists first… In stage two, they will open up local wallets to enable peer-to-peer transactions within the local economies. On the other hand, social networking and gaming giant Tencent is also trying a similar path with investments in Australia-based cross-border payment startup Airwallex, shortly after Tencent co-founder Zeng Liqing invested in RoyalPay, another Aussie cross-border payment service April this year. Ant Financial expects half of its users coming from overseas market in the future four years, local media has reported (in Chinese). “In the long run, synergy effects between Alipay and these firms would be created for sharing the technologies, data, users and consumption scenarios,” Andy Li, CEO of SEA fintech startup Silot, commented.įrom Alibaba’s perspective, it’s more appropriate to define the initiative as the globalization of Ant Financial’s whole financial ecosystem, of which Alipay is just one part, according to the Ant Financial spokeswoman. Since 2015, Alipay’s operator Ant Financial invested a series of local e-wallet and fintech startups including Paytm (India), Kakao Pay (South Korea), Mynt (the Philipines), Ascend Money (Thailand), and HelloPay (Singapore). They are also the places where Alipay record most active overseas usage, a spokeswoman from Ant Financial told TechNode.Īlthough tourist consumption remains the top priority in the overseas market, the companies behind them are moving towards local users through investment or partnership with local firms. Regions and countries like Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan, and Korea are the most popular destinations for Chinese tourists. But the partners they are looking at skew toward those more commonly visited by tourists, such as airports duty-free shops, scenic spots, restaurants, and convenience stores. Like in China, the two firms are diligently forming local partnerships to promote themselves as a commercial solution. ![]() Known as the world’s most voracious spenders, 135 million Chinese outbound tourists spent a total of $261 billion in 2016, according to World Tourism Organisation. When tapping overseas markets, both companies chose the soft landing approach through easy entry points in Chinese outbound tourists. Alipay and WeChat Pay, the two third-party payment tools that nearly split China’s mobile payment market, are pushing the trend. Now the same mobile payment craze that has taken China is making a foray into overseas markets. Data from research institution iResearch shows that the value of China’s mobile payments market tripled to more than RMB 38.5 trillion ($5.6 trillion) in 2016 and is projected to reach RMB 55 trillion in 2017. From flagship stores of top-notch luxury brands to street butcher shops, payment through third-party apps is as valid as cash itself, only with faster and less of a hassle.
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