CommBank lets Australian businesses accept Alipay
The bank's Albert terminal can now accept the popular Chinese payment option.
CommBank has announced that businesses using its payment platform Albert will be able to accept Alipay payments instore from today, in what is sure to be a welcome announcement for businesses over the holiday season. Alipay, operated by Ant Financial Services Group, is the world's largest mobile and online platform and is the payment option of choice for approximately 900 million users globally. The majority of these users are from China, which is Australia's largest tourist market.
CommBank and Alipay first announced they were working together in October 2016 when they signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together and develop a solution for Alipay payments to be accepted instore.
Alipay country manager for Australia and New Zealand George Lawson said, "Banks are pivotal to Alipay's expansion in Australia, and the fact that CBA has a growing market share in business banking customers, means we can now switch on our technology for thousands of merchants simultaneously through their existing Albert devices. With the festive season fast approaching, businesses that use Alipay will be best placed to attract additional sales in what is a busy travel period for Chinese consumers."
CBA Executive General Manager, Business Customer Solutions Clive Van Horen agreed, saying, "This is a game changer and we are thrilled to be the first major bank to provide Alipay as a payment option for customers through our market leading and innovative apps ecosystem, Albert App Bank."
While Commbank is the first major Australian bank to offer Alipay as a payment solution, other Australian brands have also partnered with Alipay in the past. For example, Westfield Sydney and Alipay hosted a Double 12 Festival in December 2017 which offered discounts to Alipay users.
Businesses looking to offer Alipay on their Albert device just need to download the ePay app, which is an existing CommBank provider. The ePay app also gives businesses the option to use location-based promotional campaigns to Alipay wallet users before they arrive in Australia.
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