GCash, operated by Globe Fintech Innovations Inc. (Mynt), is expanding its services to five more international tourist markets.
Through an expanded partnership with Alipay+, the cross-border mobile payment and digitalization solutions operated by Ant International, GCash services are made available in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates at select Alipay+-enabled stores, bringing its total number of markets to more than 45.
Through this partnership, Filipinos traveling in these five tourist destinations will be able to use GCash’s Scan-to-Pay feature for seamless transactions with no service fees and with low foreign exchange rates.
With Alipay+ available to over 80 million merchants in the Chinese mainland, GCash users will be able to make the most of their trip by saving with each transaction.
“We want to make sure every Filipino can maximize their GCash account wherever they are across the world. We are glad to strengthen our long-standing partnership with Alipay+ and expand GCash’s capabilities and services to more destinations in Asia and all over the globe,” Paul Albano, GCash International’s general manager, said in a statement.
“We’re continuing to work with GCash to make it easier for Filipinos traveling overseas to enjoy seamless payment in more destinations around the world, transparent fees, and access to more destination promotions. As we head towards the year-end travel season, this will make travel to these popular destinations more convenient, and Filipinos can simply travel with their preferred home payment app, GCash,” said Edward Yue, general manager of Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Ant International.
In a related development, Alipay+’s mobile payment partners from around the world have also seen significant growth.
In the first nine months of 2024, the number of people using Alipay+ payment partner apps while abroad increased by three times, and the number of transactions rose by more than three times.
As of October 2024, Alipay+ has more than 30 payment partners, including leading e-wallets and bank apps from Asia and beyond, with 1.6 billion consumers, connecting consumers to more than 90 million merchants in 66 markets.