Figures from UnionPay show that its volume of overseas mobile transactions completed via the UnionPay Mobile QuickPass — a form of near-field communication technology payment — and QR codes increased 150 percent year-on- year during the traditional Chinese New Year holiday from Feb 15 to 21. The number of mobile transactions was three times higher than in 2017.

 

An increasing number of overseas businesses have started to offer UnionPay QR code payment services in a bid to cater to the changing demands of UnionPay cardholders.

 

Leading up to the 2018 Chinese New Year, businesses in Nepal, Djibouti, Kenya and many other countries and regions launched UnionPay QR code payment services.

 

It said a great number of businesses in Indonesia, Cambodia and Mauritius will launch the service in the next few months, and it has already been launched in Singapore and Vietnam, as well as China's Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao.

 

Figures from UnionPay show that its services are available at over 23 million businesses and 1.64 million ATMs in 168 countries and regions. During this year's Spring Festival holiday, noted restaurants, hotels, stores and entertainment service providers in 22 popular overseas tourist destinations offered exclusive discounts of up to 30 percent for UnionPay cardholders.