Commentary
China’s mobile payment transactions from January to October 2017 reached over 81 trillion yuan ($12.8 trillion), which far surpasses the United States at only $49.3 billion. While American consumers are concerned about security on mobile platforms and pondering on whether to accept mobile wallets or not, China’s e-commerce market is rapidly driven by its mobile-first consumer behavior. The convenience and ease of mobile payment have been highlighted in China by its ruling Communist Party.The expansion of China’s mobile payment system into the U.S. market has already gained significant roots. Alipay, owned by Jack Ma’s Ant Financial, entered the U.S. market in 2016 and has inked deals with payment processors that will allow it to bring its technology to America. Already, many New York taxis offer it as a payment option to customers. On May 8, 2018, Alipay and the Atlanta-based payments processor First Data announced a deal, which allow over 4 million U.S. merchants to accept mobile payment via the Alipay service. This deal puts Alipay in the same league as Apple Pay, which serves 4.5 million U.S. merchants.
