SINGAPORE: Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) announced it has achieved 80% of its goal of 250,000 cross-border QR payments in 2024 on Oct 22. +
This milestone comes just one year after OCBC integrated Alipay+ into its cross-border QR payment options on the OCBC Digital app, said the head of global consumer financial services, Sunny Quek.
He said the addition of Alipay+ joined services like UnionPay International, Thailand’s PromptPay, Malaysia’s DuitNow, and Indonesia’s Quick Response Indonesian Standard.
Mr Quek added that the bank is on track to meet its target, which is over four times the number of such payments made in 2023.
According to The Edge Singapore, a large portion of the spending, about 75%, comes from Alipay+ usage in China.
This increase in transactions follows the introduction of a 30-day visa-free arrangement for Singaporeans visiting China earlier this year, which has led to a rise in travel bookings.
The types of transactions using QR payments included transport, food purchases, and shopping at popular areas like Beijing’s Wangfujing Street and Shanghai’s New World City Mall, as well as at tourist attractions like Shanghai Disneyland.
By the end of September, the total amount spent through Alipay+ was five times higher than the entire amount spent in 2023.
Mr Quek noted that the average transaction amount for Alipay+ has doubled to around $200 in the past three months.
He pointed out that, after raising the daily spending limit, almost 10% of OCBC customers have made payments exceeding $1,000.
“This indicates they are gaining confidence in using QR payments for their holiday expenses,” he added.
Mr Quek said OCBC will keep exploring “new corridors for expansion” through existing and new partnerships. /TISG
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