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Ant Group’s Alipay+ has teamed up with several e-wallet brands in Asia to help them expand to South Korea. The company also wants to promote cashless travel in the country, and this is another reason for the partnership.
On Monday, Sept. 26, Ant Group said it would be helping four leading e-wallets in Asia - the Philippines' GCash, Thailand’s TrueMoney, Malaysia's Touch'n Go, and AlipayHK - to enter and expand in the said East Asian nation.
The company is planning to bring the four e-wallets to South Korea through its cross-border payment service which is Alipay+. This is the perfect time to introduce the e-wallets there as the restrictions for travel across Asia are slowly being lifted.
Once people start travelling to South Korea again, it will be easier for them to pay for their purchases and services as will be able to use the e-wallets that they have been using at home. Likewise, through the collaboration with Alipay+, users of GCash, TrueMoney, Touch’n Go, and AlipayHK would be free to pay at more than 120,000 local merchants in Korea.
There is no need to download any additional app for the service as they will be able to use the same mobile payments that they are using in their own countries. The Ant Group said the first batch of merchants that will honor the four Asian e-wallets include convenience stores, duty-free shops, and taxis.
Prior to this, Alipay+ made it possible for Touch'n Go users to pay through their e-wallet in Singapore. And now that visiting South Korea for business and leisure is easier with the relaxed COVID-19 protocols and requirements, popular Asian digital wallets are also coming to the country with the help of the Chinese financial services firm.
“With South Korea being one of the most popular destinations of Filipinos, we are delighted that our customers will be able to maximize their GCash app during their travels,” Mynt’s president and chief executive officer, Martha Sazon, said in a press release. “This collaboration with Alipay+ provides our users the convenience they need to easily transact and manage their expenses with GCash.”
She added that the partnership with Alipay+ aligns with their vision of financial inclusion. The company believes this is one big step as it moves towards building a cashless ecosystem worldwide.
