According to the Australian Financial Review, a wave of mobile payments has swept the Australian business community. The latest company to keep up with the fleet is taxi giant Cabcharge.Cabcharge, which announced an agreement on Monday that more than 20, 000 taxis across Australia will accept payment from Alipay's (Alipay) terminal.
With a growing number of Chinese visitors to Australia, Cabcharge expects to benefit from its partnership with Alipay.
Cabcharge is not the only merchant to accept payment from Alipay. Since Alipay entered Australia and New Zealand in 2016, more than 8000 Australian companies have accepted payment from Alipay.
After Uber (Uber) 's entry into Australia, Cabcharge hopes to reinvent itself as a digital intelligent transportation company through the deal, which has affected Cabcharge's revenues.
The vigorous Development of E-commerce in China and the change of payment Mode in Australia
In addition, Cabcharge's agreement with Alipay is the latest evidence that the Chinese e-commerce boom is affecting the way payments are being made in Australia.
In China, most passengers pay for their fares by downloading mobile payment apps to their phones. This is a fast, efficient system, passengers only need to scan the back of the two-dimensional code, can complete the payment.
China's cash-free economy means consumers can pay for almost all goods or services through China's most popular payment apps, Alipay and social app,.
China's economic and social transition from cash economy to cash-free economy and society is rapid. However, many Chinese have become accustomed to this. When many Chinese consumers take Australian taxis, they don't even know how to pay when they see no familiar QR codes attached to the back of the car.
Cabcharge pilot program: first allow passengers to scan the code to pay the fare
Cabcharge will start with a pilot scheme that will allow passengers to pay for cars using mobile phone scanning QR codes, similar to those used in Chinese taxis. If the pilot scheme succeeds, Cabcharge will launch more than 20, 000 taxis that receive payment from Alipay's terminals.
Skelton (Andrew Skelton), chief executive of Cabcharge, said the deal focused on Chinese visitors to Australia as the new payment technology swept through the world (, (Cabcharge's co-operation with Alipay). "Chinese visitors to Australia include tourists, business travelers, and students." "there are more and more people going back," he said. "it's natural for them to take a taxi or rent a car."
As of October last year, 1.34 million Chinese tourists visited Australia, according to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. By 2026, more than 3 million Chinese tourists are expected to come to Australia. In addition, Australia currently has about 165000 Chinese students.
In addition to Alipay, Chinese tech giant Tencent social app pays (WePay) 's social app payment (WePay) and Liu Qiangdong's JD.com Mall is targeting markets outside China, including Australia.