Ant International, in partnership with the National Bank of Cambodia, has launched cross-border QR code payments between its cross-border mobile payment and digitalisation solutions, Alipay+, and the bank’s Bakong payment system.
With this initiative, Alipay+ partner users of 12 international payment apps – Alipay (China), AlipayHK (Hong Kong SAR), Touch ‘n Go eWallet and MyPB by Public Bank (Malaysia), GCash (the Philippines), Kakao Pay, Toss Pay (South Korea), OCBC and Changi Pay (Singapore), Hipay (Mongolia), MPay (Macao SAR) and Tinaba (Italy) – will be able to seamlessly make payments to more than one million merchants in Cambodia by scanning KHQR codes, with more to be progressively added.
This will facilitate the payment for goods and services to businesses in Cambodia with accounts denominated in Cambodian riels.
KHQR, launched by National Bank of Cambodia in July 2022 and operated by Bakong, was created for retail payment in Cambodia and cross-border payment within South-east Asian countries. It only requires a single QR for receiving payment through any mobile banking apps of Bakong members including Bakong App, making QR payment simple for both customers and merchants in Cambodia.
Chea Serey, governor of the National Bank of Cambodia, said: “I firmly believe that the partnership between Alipay+ and Bakong’s KHQR network would elevate financial cooperation by leveraging technology to benefit the customers, and is one of the most impactful developments in supporting the country’s digitalisation journey and helping merchants capture new opportunities in the evolving landscape.”
Edward Yue, general manager for Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Ant International, commented: “(The parnership) will not only enhance the travel experience for global consumers, but will also enable more local businesses to benefit from the strong tourism recovery.
“We will continue to work closely with regulators, merchants and other industry partners to create a new future of cross-border payments and travel.”
