China's Alipay available in German retail chain

Wang Xin China Plus Published: 2017-04-12 19:30:14
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Alipay available for Chinese users at Rossmann supermarkets in Germany. [Photo: huanqiu.com]

Alipay available for Chinese users at Rossmann supermarkets in Germany. [Photo: huanqiu.com]

Chinese people, starting this month, are now able to use their Alipay services through the mobile device at all checkouts and online shops of retail chain Dirk Rossmann GmbH in Germany, German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports.

"For us, Chinese tourists are an increasingly important target group. They have a particularly high demand for baby products, cosmetics and organic products." said Rossmann CEO Raoul Roßmann.

Two million Chinese tourists visit Germany every year, with the average shopping spending close to 3,200 US dollars on their trip, according to Wirecard, a company which works with Rossmann to offer Alipay payments.

"The supermarket chains in Germany face severe competition. Chinese consumers are familiar with Alipay. By introducing the payment system, we can make Rossmann the preferred shopping place for Chinese customers," explains a director with Rossmann.

Mobile payments are popular in Asia, North America and European countries. Banks in Germany are also working on integrating the mobile payments into mobile applications. Germany will fully implement mobile payments after finishing service tests in 2018, according to the German Association of Savings Banks.

Alipay available in South Korea. [Photo: 19lou.com]

Alipay available in South Korea. [Photo: 19lou.com]

From July to September of 2016, mobile payments in China totaled 9 trillion yuan(USD 1.3 trillion), two times that during the same period of 2015, according to analysys.cn.

As the world's largest mobile and online payment platform, Alipay has been seeking to export its mobile payments abroad in recent years.

Alipay account can be used for tax rebates at the London Heathrow Airport. [Photo: ctrip.com]

Alipay account can be used for tax rebates at the London Heathrow Airport. [Photo: ctrip.com]

Alipay is now accepted by the department store Harrods and Selfridges in Britain. It has also cooperated with American payment technology solutions companies First Data and Verifone.

So far, Alipay can be used in 70 countries, including Japan, South Korean, India and Italy, reports linkshop.com.cn.

Rossmann is partly owned by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing.

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