• Published on 8 November 2023
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PayNet and Ant Group enable cross-border digital payments for eight Asian corridors

Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) and Ant Group launched their cross-border digital payments collaboration that has enabled travellers from eight countries to use PayNet’s DuitNow QR in Malaysia, further boosting international tourism and trade among these countries.

Effective 31 October 2023, travellers with the following Alipay+ supported wallets can expect the convenience of travelling cashless to Malaysia and make digital payments by simply scanning PayNet’s DuitNow QR at its network of over 1.8 million merchants touchpoints throughout the country:

• Alipay (China)
• AlipayHK (Hong Kong SAR)
• HelloMoney by AUB (Philippines)
• Hipay (Mongolia)
• MPay (Macau SAR)
• Naver Pay (South Korea)
• Toss Pay (South Korea)
• TrueMoney (Thailand)

More Alipay+ payment partners are also in the pipeline and will progressively be enabled in Malaysia. Additionally, the reciprocal connection to enable DuitNow QR users in Malaysia to make payment at Alipay+ global merchants is expected to gradually be in place from 2024
onwards. The Alipay+ merchant ecosystem currently includes tens of millions of merchants in more than 50 markets. The collaboration was signified by a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in August this year between Ant Group, operator of Alipay+ and PayNet, operator of DuitNow QR.

Farhan Ahmad, group CEO of PayNet, said: “With this collaboration with Ant Group, I am seeing a new Silk Route emerging; one that is powered by cross-border payment interoperability. Businesses in the DuitNow QR ecosystem can immediately access travellers from eight more countries in an efficient, seamless, and secure way, bolstering trade and commerce. It could not have materialised at a better time.

The Malaysian tourism industry is back on a steady growth path and will be further energised by Visit Malaysia Year in 2026. Collectively, these linkages will connect economies that contribute over two-thirds to global GDP growth and home to over 60% of the world’s population whose median age is younger than global average. At this rate, we may very well see ASEAN+3 economic integration sooner than we think.”

DuitNow QR is the National QR Standard operated by PayNet, which enables participating merchants to accept real-time payments from customers of participating banks and e-wallet in this, as well as other connected countries with a single unified QR code.

Douglas Feagin, senior vice president of Ant Group and head of Alipay+ cross-border mobile payment services added: "We are excited to collaborate with PayNet to make digital payments in Malaysia more convenient for users, with our partnership coming to life just as we approach the year-end travel season. A recent report we commissioned found that intra-Asia cross-border travel and payments will accelerate over the next few years, with average consumer spending almost doubling from 2016 to 2025. This growth reinforces the need to better connect local merchants with international visitors through payments, marketing and other digital services to not only enhance the travel experience, but also boost the local tourism ecosystem in Malaysia.”

The collaboration will go beyond connectivity to encompass joint digital marketing initiatives, aiming to enhance the visibility of merchants’ businesses within users' e-wallets. Both parties will also collaborate through a marketing travel solution powered by Alipay+, for improved
customer engagement, where international travellers using Alipay+ supported e-wallets’ can earn reward points or receive discounts and benefits at PayNet’s DuitNow QR merchants’ ecosystem.

Re-disseminated by The Asian Banker