UNPay Drives QR Code Payment in Singapore with Hospitality and F&B Merchants

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - November 30, 2018 - In a bid to support the Singapore government in driving cashless payments, UNPAY, a global fintech company that enables cross-border financial services via its open platform, has ramped up efforts in promoting QR code payment among the retail merchants locally. For a start, UNPay will provide its merchants with popular Chinese QR code payments, and is looking to expand its reach to include the region's QR code payment providers by the second half of next year.

About 1.9 million Chinese tourists¹ visited Singapore between January to July 2017, making China one of the biggest contributors to Singapore's visitor arrivals. While in Singapore, Chinese tourists spent a whopping $3.08 billion² in tourism receipts in 2017, which is a 10% increase from the year before. The Singapore Tourism Board estimates that this number is set to grow.

Recognising that there is a need to cater to this burgeoning segment in the market, UNPay has─in its first phase─acquired merchants in the hospitality and food and beverage sectors. UNPay will support these merchants with popular QR code payment methods such as Alipay and WeChat Pay, enabling the inbound Chinese tourists to pay via their preferred payment methods. In the coming months, UNPay will also be progressively acquiring foreign e-wallets to provide more payment options for inbound tourists around the world.

Since its inception in June last year, UNPay is currently connected to over 500 online payment methods, achieving a comprehensive coverage of more than 200 countries and regions. Within a short span of time, UNPay has become the world's most extensive payment service network. The business currently spans industries in travel, education, e-commerce and digital entertainment.

Zhang Zhenghua, CEO and Founder of UNPay, expressed, "Through our active acquisition of merchants, we hope to drive the use of QR code payment in Singapore, keeping in line with the rollout of SGQR code in September.  We are confident that with our expertise and technology, we will be able to bring greater benefits to our merchants via our integrated payment platform, while providing a more seamless and convenient way for consumers to pay."

During this holiday season, customers who pay with Alipay or WeChat Pay supported by UNPAY, can look forward to enjoying exclusive deals such as complimentary daily breakfast, free make-up set from popular Korean brand as well as a complimentary beer or housepour with every two paying drinks. For more information, please follow the UNPay WeChat Channel.

¹https://www.stb.gov.sg/news-and-publications/lists/newsroom/dispform.aspx?ID=718

²https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/tourist-spending-in-singapore-hit-record-268b-in-2017-china-top-source-of-visitors