A range of mobile payment and banking options have recently become popular in China. The market is currently dominated by Alipay, an affiliate of the Alibaba Group, and Tencent’s Quick Pay, whose QR code-based model is gaining popularity among consumers, particularly the younger generation. UnionPay, the State-controlled bank card association that runs the country’s interbank network and monopolizes the country’s bank card payments, however, is rapidly losing both business and revenue. The industry has seen similar previous issues. In March 2014, the People’s Bank of China suspended QR code payments handled by third-party payment providers because of security concerns and the ban was not lifted until August 2016. Critics said the competition of the online payment market is expected to intensify following the policy relaxation and a growing number of mobile payment providers will join the fray - but only the fittest will survive.
Old Version
