PiPay Partners Alipay to Grow Merchant Network for Chinese Tourists in Cambodia

Phnom Penh– Less than six months since Pi Pay revolutionized Cambodia’s cashless payment landscape, the company today inked a partnership with Alipay , world’s largest online and mobile payment platform operated by Ant Financial Services Group, to become its first local partner in Cambodia to acquire merchants to join the Alipay platform and better reach Chinese tourists.

Pi Pay has rapidly grown to become the go-to mobile payment option across the capital, with more than 168,000 downloads of the app and $27 million U.S. dollars being spent or transferred by users.

The partnership will see Alipay become immediately available as a payment option for Chinese tourists across Pi Pay’s merchant network in Cambodia, which consists of over 1,400 businesses at the moment, including everything from high-end dining, haute couture fashion and spa treatments to mini-marts and petrol stations. The acceptance points will cover Phnom Penh for now with Siem Reap and Sihanoukville being added in the near future, according to the two companies.

With the partnership, Chinese tourists traveling to Cambodia will be able to use the Alipay app for payments wherever Pi Pay QR codes are available. Cambodian merchants who are partnered with Pi Pay will be able to use their Pi Pay terminals to take payments from Alipay users – increasing their potential customer base among visiting or resident Chinese who use Alipay.

The signing ceremony between Pi Pay and AliPay, on 20th December.

With Pi Pay’s established position as Cambodia’s cashless payment option of choice, and with the increasing numbers of Chinese visitors expecting the convenience of paying for goods and services with their phones as they do at home, the partnership was a natural decision, explained Pi Pay CEO Tomas Pokorny.

“We are very proud that Pi Pay’s success in demonstrating the demand for cashless in Cambodia has been recognized by Alipay. We look forward to working together to increase the number of places across the country where Chinese tourists can make cashless payments,” he said.

“With the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism predicting 2 million Chinese visitors a year by 2020, and with so many of them fully appreciating the life-changing effects of living a cashless lifestyle, we are excited at what this will mean for Cambodia and for our merchant partners who will benefit from this growth in their client base,” he added.

“Alipay aims to enable the smart lifestyle for Chinese consumers and bring the convenience that they enjoy at home to overseas countries they travel to, and we achieve this through our continuous efforts in expanding our merchant and partner ecosystem globally. With Cambodia being such a popular destination among Chinese travelers, we are excited to work with Pi Pay as our acquiring partner to benefit our users and at the same time, to provide an effective platform for local businesses in Cambodia to reach Chinese consumers,” said Cherry Huang, General Manager, Cross-border Business for South and Southeast Asia, Alipay.

Chinese tourists, drawn by the temples of Angkor Wat Park and the beaches of Sihanoukville, are visiting in record numbers, accounting for almost a quarter of the 5 million tourist arrivals in 2016, and on track for over 40% increase in 2017.

PiPay allows users to experience the cashless payment

The penetration of cashless payment in China has been boosted by the innovative use of QR codes, which allow users to scan a merchant’s printed or dynamic QR code with their Alipay app, enter the amount to pay, and press ok – no fumbling for cash, and waiting for change.

In Cambodia, this technology allows Pi Pay users to enjoy the same life-easing benefits, and means that all Pi Pays users can effectively become merchants and accept payments from other Pi Pay or Alipay users for whatever goods and services they might offer, no matter the price.

Pi Pay partners Alipay to grow merchant network for Chinese tourists in Cambodia