In China, Kakao Pay is rapidly expanding its “payment territory.” The convenience of being able to use the Kakao Pay app as it is by utilizing the wide network of members of China’s No. 1 payment service Alipay was effective.
Shin Won-geun, CEO of Kakao Pay, said at a press conference in Beijing on the 18th, “The number of users in China increased 108 times and the number of payments increased 193 times in August this year, five months after the start of the payment service in China,” adding, “The amount of payment has also grown 1,263 times.”
Kakao Pay began working-level discussions on services with Alipay in 2018 and completed a test in conjunction with Alipay Plus merchants in China in March. Alipay is a payment service for Chinese people, and Alipay Plus is a franchise network that allows foreign users to pay in China. Alipay Plus is joined by G Cash (Philippines), Touch & Go (Malaysia), True Money (Thailand), Tina Ba (Italy), and Pay (Japan), centering on Alipay (China).
Korean tourists can pay using the Kakao Pay app without installing a separate app on tens of millions of Alipay Plus affiliates. User personal information is not sent to partner Alipay Plus.
Along with Kakao Pay, Naver Pay has also completed linking its payment service. Toss, the second largest shareholder of Ant Group, which operates Alipay, is also expected to try to link. In response, CEO Shin said, “Kakao Pay participated as a key partner from the stage of Alipay Plus’ global payment network development,” adding, “(Thanks to this), Chinese tourists using Alipay can freely use the Kakao Pay network if they visit Korea.” As of the second week of September, the number of Kakao Pay payments by Chinese tourists in Korea increased by nearly 50% compared to a month ago.
Payment fees are also cheaper than conventional credit cards. CEO Shin emphasized, “We cannot mention specific figures, but the fee is much less than credit card payments.”
CEO Shin said, “The goal is to allow more than 80% of merchants in China to pay with Kakao Pay within this year,” stressing, “It is a good opportunity to grow the market itself with competitors.”
