Thunes QR Code Payments Tool Streamlines Transactions for Travelers Visiting China

Thunes launched a payments tool to help travelers doing business in China.

The company’s new QR Code Payments solution enables foreign mobile wallets and financial institutions to directly access China’s increasingly cashless economy, according to a Tuesday (Oct. 22) press release.

The country has seen a 25% reduction in ATMs over the past six years, and Forbes reported that mobile payments account for over 85% of all Chinese transactions, the release said.

Thunes’ QR Code Payments service connects members of the company’s Direct Global Network, like mobile wallets, neobanks and banks with mobile capabilities, to Chinese QR code payment systems, including e-CNY, Alipay and WeChat Pay. This allows travelers to make payments by scanning merchant-presented QR codes, according to the release.

“With this launch, we’re empowering our members to provide their app users the convenience of paying like a local in China, quickly, dependably and with full transparency,” Thunes CEO Floris de Kort said in the release. “By enabling Thunes’ Chinese QR code payments into their apps, mobile wallets, neobanks and financial institutions can enhance the user experience while unlocking new revenue streams…”

Thunes is working with several members of its network, including Hanpass in South Korea, M-Pesa in Kenya and Vodacom in Tanzania, to implement the solution for customers traveling to China. Other members are expected to join in the future.

The launch comes as China prepares for an increase in foreign visitors due to a visa-free travel initiative, per the release. After those travelers arrive, they may discover that smaller merchants don’t take foreign credit cards, forcing them to download a local payment app that might require sensitive information.

As the connected economy grows, more emphasis will be placed on easing cross-border payments friction. Last month, PayPal launched a payments platform that supports cross-border transactions in China for businesses of all sizes.

By enabling transactions in about 200 countries and regions and in more than 100 currencies, PayPal’s network enables Chinese merchants to reach over 400 million active PayPal users and billions of consumers who use cards and alternative payment methods.

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