Wirecard and Alipay Sign Agreement for Innovative POS Payment Acceptance

MUNICH, December 11, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

• Barcode payment at retailers in Europe 

A collaboration on innovative point-of-sale (POS) payment acceptance based on internet technologies and value added services in Europe between the Wirecard Group and Alipay, a business of Ant Financial, a related company of Alibaba Group, is set to begin today. The partnership will enable the brands and retailers to tap into the Chinese tourism market, worth US$ 165 billion in 2014 according to World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), and provide a channel for them to engage with Chinese tourists.  

Alipay is the largest provider of China's leading internet payment solution with 400 million active users, owning over 50% of the market share in online payment and 80% in mobile. Its mobile wallet is being widely used for payments in online shops and also at the point-of-sale in China. Now, Chinese users are able to pay with their smartphone and Alipay app at authorised POS retailers in Europe by using integrated barcode payment functionality from Wirecard, without the hassle of incurring currency exchange fees. Wirecard is a full service provider for merchants, offering POS infrastructure, payment processing and acquiring services.

"In Wirecard, we have found a strong and flexible partner. Our plan is to enable an easy rollout of our payment and value-added services solution to various merchants in Europe," said Rita Liu, Head of Europe of Alipay. "Our customers have very high trust in our brand as Alipay is an essential part of their daily life. We are therefore confident that many users will be using our new, convenient and cashless offer when travelling to Europe."

Wirecard provides Alipay with state-of-the-art-payment technology for merchants. The solution complements the traditional point-of-sale terminal, as the entire payment process of Alipay transactions is handled by Wirecard's innovative ConnectedPOS technology. The solution can be installed either directly on the merchant's POS system or externally between the merchant's POS system and the receipt printer, not requiring any alteration of the existing infrastructure. For the merchant, the entire checkout process is very quick and easy: a customer who wants to pay cashless on the move via the Alipay Wallet will show the barcode on their smartphone display. To initiate the payment process immediately, all a merchant must do is scan this barcode with a hand scanner.

Jörn Leogrande, Executive Vice President at Mobile Services with Wirecard: "We are proud to be Alipay's one of the first partners for POS acceptance in Europe. With our innovative ConnectedPOS technology, we can easily integrate Alipay payments in Europe without the need to alter POS software or terminal infrastructure. Alipay is the preferred online and mobile payment tool for many Chinese users and merchants. This cooperation unlocks further sales potential from the growth market of Chinese tourists and business people. After a successful start, we plan to expand our offer for Alipay customers, for example by including integrated tax refund services."

Further information available at: https://www.wirecard.com/alipay/

About Wirecard: 

Wirecard AG is a global technology group that supports companies in accepting electronic payments from all sales channels. As a leading independent supplier, the Wirecard Group offers outsourcing and white label solutions for electronic payments. A global platform bundles international payment acceptances and methods with supplementary fraud prevention solutions. With regard to issuing own payment instruments in the form of cards or mobile payment solutions, the Wirecard Group provides companies with an end-to-end infrastructure, including the requisite licences for card and account products. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Securities Exchange (TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060, WDI). For further information about Wirecard, please visit http://www.wirecard.com  or follow us on twitter @wirecard.

About Alipay: 

Alipay is the world's leading third-party payment platform, with 400 million registered users and more than 200 financial institution partners. With mobile payments accounting for more than half of Alipay's over 120 million transactions per day, the company most recently launched Alipay 9.2 as its latest smartphone app. In addition to traditional online payment functions such as online shopping, money transfers, and utility bills, Alipay is expanding its applications to include wealth management services, and provides local services to over 200,000 restaurants, shops and offline merchants. As of October 2015, Alipay's barcode payment is accepted in about 50,000 overseas retail stores, and tax reimbursements via Alipay are supported in 24 countries.

Wirecard media contact:

Wirecard AG
Maren Brandt
Tel.: +49-(0)-89-4424-1425
Email: maren.brandt@wirecard.com

Alipay media contact:

Ant Financial Services Group
Miranda Shek
Email: haymanmiranda.shm@alipay.com