(1 November 2016 – Australia) The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has announced plans to introduce China-based payment system, Alipay to Australia.
CBA has signed a memorandum of understanding with Alibaba-owned Alipay that will allow Chinese tourists and students to make Alipay-based payments at retailers with the CommBank's Albert point-of-sales device.
According to the bank, around 19,000 Chinese tourists visit Australia each week, spending nearly A$8000 per person.
“Australia is a popular destination for Chinese travelers and Chinese students studying overseas. We want Alipay users to enjoy the kind of convenience they are used to at home. We are working with regional and global partners like Commonwealth Bank to make this happen,” said Douglas Feagin, head of Alipay International and senior vice president of parent company Ant Financial Services Group.
CBA’s group executive for institutional banking and markets Kelly Bayer Rosmarin added: “We are thrilled to be the first Australian bank to collaborate with Alipay in building an innovative payments solution that leverages our leading e-commerce and point of sale platforms. We are constantly working on payment solutions that offer flexibility and choice for our customers so the prospect of bringing them closer to a globally leading mobile payments provider, and its 450 million active users, is truly exciting.”
Alipay and CBA also plan to make it easier for Australian customers to pay for their purchases on Alibaba Group e-commerce sites, which include Taobao.com, Tmall.com, and Aliexpress.com.