Alipay+ partners with LankaPay

Ant Group's payment platform, Alipay+, is partnering with LankaPay, Sri Lanka’s National Payment Network, to enhance your travel experience through digital innovation.

Here's an overview of what this partnership means:

• Who are the players? Alipay+ is a global leader in cross-border digital payments, while LankaPay aims to streamline QR-based transactions in Sri Lanka. They have signed a memorandum of understanding to make digital payments seamless for both incoming and outgoing travelers.

• The Benefit for Alipay+ Users: They can now make payments at over 400,000 LankaQR merchants across Sri Lanka and use Alipay+ to scan and pay when traveling globally.

• Expansion Plan: By early 2024, top Asian e-wallet users from Hong Kong SAR, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Thailand will be able to use cashless payments in Sri Lanka via LankaQR.

• Expected Outcomes: LankaPay's CEO, Channa de Silva, is optimistic about this partnership. It's expected to offer an attractive proposition to SME merchants with lower commission rates than card payments. Alipay+ and LankaPay also aim to promote Sri Lanka as a prominent tourist destination and local businesses abroad.

• Future Compatibility: By the end of 2024, Alipay+'s global merchant network will accept all e-wallets supported by LankaPay.

• Alipay+'s Reach: Alipay+ presently serves as a payment option for millions of merchants in over 50 countries.

• About Alipay+: Launched by Ant Group in 2020, Alipay+ offers local businesses, particularly SMEs, access to extensive mobile payment methods, connecting them with over 1.4 billion regional and global consumers. It's accepted in popular tourist destinations like mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia, and others.

Sri Lanka is experiencing a tourism surge with over 1 million tourists from January to September this year. With China opening up travel for its citizens, Sri Lanka aims to attract more Asian tourists. Local businesses are urged to adapt and accept LankaQR.