Hang Seng Bank becomes Alipay+'s first Hong Kong banking partner, adding QR payments at 100 million merchants
Hang Seng Bank becomes Alipay+’s first Hong Kong banking partner, adding QR payments at 100 million merchants #
Ant International has signed Hang Seng Bank as Alipay+’s first banking partner in Hong Kong, giving the bank’s customers access to QR code payments at more than 100 million merchants across more than 55 countries and regions.
Announced in a press release on 24 July, the arrangement allows Hang Seng Mobile App users to scan QR codes in mainland China and abroad, including in the United States, Europe, Australia, South Korea, and Malaysia, without downloading a separate payments app. The feature is built into an update to the bank’s existing JustPay function and lets users track overseas spending within the same app.
The agreement also runs in the other direction. Hang Seng Bank will act as an acquirer, opening its network of more than 20,000 Hong Kong merchants to international visitors paying with any digital wallet connected to the Alipay+ platform.
Alipay+ is Ant International’s unified wallet gateway, connecting more than 50 digital wallets and financial institutions worldwide. The Hang Seng deal extends a strategy of adding direct banking partners to that network rather than relying only on standalone digital wallets.
The announcement came alongside news of additional Alipay+ agreements in Central Asia. Freedom Bank Kazakhstan, part of Freedom Holding Corp., signed a memorandum of understanding with Antom, Ant International’s merchant payments arm, to develop cross-border payment solutions for Kazakhstani consumers.
For Hang Seng Bank, the deal adds cross-border payments to its mobile banking app as outbound travel from Hong Kong continues to drive demand for overseas spending tools. The bank cited integrated payment and expense tracking within a single app as the main benefit for customers.
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