Tag: Ant Group

Bangkok, Thailand – Ant Group has announced that it has teamed up with Thailand retail company Central Retail Corporation (CRC) to launch the payment solution Alipay+ across CRC’s over 3000 stores in the country. 

Some of the stores being supported include Central Retail, including Central and Robinson Department Stores, Supersports, Tops, Power Buy, B2S, OfficeMate, Matsukiyo, Tops Vita and Muji, unlocking convenience and choice for tourists in Thailand.

Users can also make digital payments via their local digital wallet, including China’s Alipay, Hong Kong’s AlipayHK, Malaysia’s Touch ‘n Go eWallet and South Korea’s Kakao Pay without having to carry cash or exchange to Thai currency. 

Piyawan Leelasompop, head of corporate marketing at Central Retail Corporation, said, “This partnership between Central Retail and Ant Group to launch Alipay+ in Thailand will increase digital payment channels for Central Retail customers, delivering comprehensive services to serve consumers who prefer cashless payments. The company aims to target Asian tourists travelling to Thailand, providing convenience for those shopping at brands under Central Retail via Alipay+ with their local mobile wallet.”

She added, “Additionally, users can also receive promotions and special privileges provided by Central Retail and international mobile wallet providers, delivering next-level shopping experiences. There are also plans in the pipeline to expand payment services, accommodating tourists from other countries, including in Asia and Europe.”

Meanwhile, Sittipong Kittiprapapong, general manager for global merchant partnership in Thailand at Ant Group commented, “It is considered an important partnership between Ant Group and Central Retail in offering modern and convenient services so international customers can make borderless digital payments. Additionally, Alipay+ will also enable vendors in Central Retail to accept digital payments from Asian tourists as well as provide a convenient platform for international shoppers to browse products throughout their time in Thailand, delivering convenient and seamless experiences just as if they are in their home country.”

Singapore – To strengthen payments and digital marketing throughout DFS’ broad network of brick-and-mortar and online retailers, DFS Group and Ant Group have partnered together in a global partnership. Because of Alipay+ it would enable DFS to provide its clients with an inclusive digital experience as it recognizes the trend of consumers adopting digital lives.

In this partnership, DFS and Ant will collaborate to deploy marketing cooperation, thereby increasing DFS’s visibility directly within Alipay and Alipay+ partner wallets’ apps. This collaboration aims to offer more targeted, personalised, and relevant rewards to shoppers, including exclusive offers, to enhance their shopping experience.

By integrating Alipay+ as a payment option, DFS enables cross-border payment acceptance from mobile wallets, making it convenient for travellers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong SAR, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand to use their home mobile wallets for payments. 

Speaking about the partnership, Long Chiu, executive vice president, global marketing and digital ventures of DFS Group, said, “This alliance with Ant Group is not just about numbers and statistics, it’s about creating a seamless and exceptional experience for travellers and shoppers. Our commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction will be elevated to new heights through this collaboration.”

He added, “With Ant’s expertise and our passion for innovation and providing unforgettable services, there is no doubt that we will achieve remarkable success together.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Cherry Huang, general manager of Alipay+ offline merchant services, Ant Group, expressed, “We are excited to strengthen our partnership with DFS, evolving to now incorporating more mobile wallets, marketing capabilities and D-Store online-offline integration via Alipay+.” 

She added, “DFS is a favourite retail destination amongst tourist right at the beginning and end of their trip, and we believe this partnership will sweeten travellers’ experience. As travel resumes, we aim to help more brands cater to these new digital-first habits and drive continued visibility and growth for them.”

Singapore – Financial technology giant Ant Group officially launched its Alipay+ D-store solution last November 3 at the Singapore FinTech Festival 2022. The solution intends to support the service industry and brick-and-mortar businesses to boost efficiency by digitalizing their operations.

Alipay+ D-store allows businesses to build digital stores across various digital platforms in a fast, scalable, and cost-efficient way. It will also give businesses a suite of toolkits to digitalize merchants’ payments, operations, services, and marketing efforts. 

The solution also gives its partners the ability to build digital stores on digital platforms in the form of mini programmes. These digital stores could also be developed as H5 pages and can be easily embedded in social media and online platforms to reach consumers.

Partner platforms of Alipay+ D-store include Chope, Alipay, Touch ‘n Go eWallet, and AlipayHK, among others. Food and beverage industry companies such as Burger King, Koufu, and more than 2,000 brands in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong SAR, China, and other markets have already adopted Alipay+ D-store in their operations.

“We welcome more digital platforms to collaborate to accelerate the digitalization of the global service industry together,” said Dr. Cherry Huang, global head of Alipay+ D-store.

She added, “Leveraging digital solutions is critical for the service industries to boost operational efficiency and adapt to the fast-changing market conditions. The Alipay+ D-store solution is developed with the goal to make it easier for brick-and-mortar businesses to go digital at scale, so that businesses can better serve and engage digital-savvy consumers by providing a seamless omni-channel experience.”

Moreover, Ant Group also announced that Alipay+ merchant coverage has more than doubled to over 2.5 million. 

Angel Zhao, president of international business of Ant Group, also revealed that Alipay+ rewards, the digital marketing platform developed by Alipay+, are already adopted by mobile payment apps such as GCash (Philippines), DANA (Indonesia), Kakao Pay (South Korea), Touch ‘n Go eWallet (Malaysia), TrueMoney (Thailand), and AlipayHK (Hong Kong SAR, China) to help global brands better engage with consumers worldwide through digital coupons and exclusive deals.

Ant Group has previously expanded its partnership with the Singapore Tourism Board, which aimed to promote tourism in Singapore through a series of digital and marketing campaigns for the next two years.

Manila, Philippines – Ant Group, the owner and operator of Alipay, has expanded its partnership with Singapore Tourism Board (STB) to make cross-border travel to Singapore more seamless and convenient. The partnership builds on the collaboration forged in 2019 and is focused on driving tourism growth in Singapore through a series of digital and marketing initiatives over the next two years. 

To strengthen Singapore’s destination appeal among travellers from Asia, including key markets like Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand, Ant Group launched the ‘SingapoReimagine with Alipay+’ campaign with STB. As part of SingapoReimagine, STB’s international recovery campaign, it will offer fresh and innovative experiences to travellers from the said markets, whilst allowing transactions in Singapore through mobile wallets that consumers are familiar with. 

The joint campaign will also highlight exclusive offers to users of the six Alipay+ partner mobile wallets when they travel to Singapore. In addition, Ant Group will progressively expand the ‘Passion Made Possible Privileges’ (PMPP), a mini programme co-branded with STB to serve tourists to Singapore – previously available only on Alipay – to other Alipay+ mobile wallets. These initiatives aim to help Singapore businesses reach and engage a new pool of customers, increasing the visibility and awareness of Singapore’s tourism offerings for visitors before and during their trips to Singapore. 

As part of the partnership, STB and Alipay+ will also explore piloting digital solutions with local businesses in areas such as digitalisation of service operations, digital marketing efficiency and enhancing customer experience. 

The new mobile wallets accepted in Singapore are GCash from the Philippines, TrueMoney from Thailand, and AlipayHK from Hong Kong SAR, China, adding to existing partners Kakao Pay from South Korea, Touch ’n Go eWallet from Malaysia and Alipay from the Chinese Mainland. 

Angel Zhao, president of international business at Ant Group, said, “We deeply believe that the benefits of digital innovations can be amplified through open collaborations in the ecosystem. Ant Group is always open to join hands with partners such as STB to provide businesses, especially small and micro enterprises the best digital services, including payments and marketing solutions and we are committed to contributing to the digital transformation of industries and create greater value for societies.” 

“Amid the fast recovery of the tourism industry, we are excited to play a part in promoting Singapore as a top destination of choice for travellers and making travel safe, seamless and efficient through digital solutions like Alipay+,” she added. 

STB Chief Executive Keith Tan said, “Singapore has seen strong travel demand from Asia since our reopening and we hope our joint initiatives can grow and sustain that demand. The next phase of our exciting partnership with Ant Group will also offer a seamless experience when travellers visit Singapore, build affinity for our destination, and drive the digitalisation of our tourism sector.”

Based on STB’s data, Hong Kong SAR, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, and Chinese Mainland were among Singapore’s top 15 markets in 2022. Prior to the pandemic, approximately a third of Singapore’s visitors were from Southeast Asia, and another third from the Chinese Mainland and the rest of Northeast Asia. 

Singapore — Payments platform 2C2P and Ant Group, an affiliate of the Chinese Alibaba Group, have struck a strategic partnership with the aim to accelerate digital payment adoption and innovation in the Southeast Asian region. The partnership, upon completion, will see Ant Group becoming the majority shareholder of 2C2P.

Through the partnership, 2C2P’s extensive pool of merchants inclusive of global and regional brands will be connected with Alipay+, extending its current 250 payment options offering to include even more e-wallets and local payment methods. With this, merchants will benefit from a wider geographical reach, connecting seamlessly to over one billion consumers globally.

Aung Kyaw Moe, founder and CEO of 2C2P, said that digital payment adoption has accelerated rapidly in recent years, spurred by the pandemic, with mobile wallet payments widely gaining momentum across Asia.

Moe adds, “Through this complementary partnership with Ant Group, 2C2P will be connected to a much larger merchant base and be well-positioned to advance our international expansion strategy. I am confident that 2C2P will be able to scale new heights, and build an unparalleled and robust range of payment solutions that will deliver maximum value and impact to our merchants and partners.”

Angel Zhao, president of Ant Group’s International Business Group, commented, “Combining Alipay+ and 2C2P’s secure and comprehensive payment offerings, extensive merchant coverage and deep local knowledge of the region, this partnership is a win-win collaboration built on strengths and the shared vision to accelerate the digital transformation for businesses through innovation and best-in-class payments solutions. We look forward to supporting businesses’ digitalisation together and creating a connected digital ecosystem across markets in the region.”

Introduced by Ant Group in 2020, Alipay+ is a suite of global cross-border digital payments and marketing solutions designed to enable businesses, especially small and medium-sized businesses, to process a wide range of mobile payment methods and reach regional and global consumers. Leading e-wallets supported by Alipay+ include Touch ‘n Go eWallet in Malaysia, KakaoPay in South Korea, GCash in the Philippines, Alipay HK in Hong Kong and more.

On the back of the partnership, 2C2P plans to further expand its global merchant coverage, in addition to strengthening its technology and product capabilities to better serve merchants across Southeast Asia and globally.

Last March, 2C2P also partnered with ShopeePay to increase access to digital payment options for consumers and merchants in Southeast Asia.