Leading Chinese online payment platform Alipay has extended its services to 40 overseas tourist destinations amid a surge in outbound trips during the ongoing National Day holiday.
Alipay's 40 new partners, mostly in Asia and Europe, include 10 airports, business districts, Chinatowns and outlet shopping malls.
In a press release, Alipay claimed that its platform processed 2.2 times as many in-store transactions overseas over the past week compared to last year.
According to the payment giant, European countries saw the fastest growth in terms of transaction volume. Transaction volume in Switzerland increased 27 times compared with the previous year, usage in Spain also grew 14 times.
The company says users on average spent RMB1,979 on their purchases through its app—an 30% increase from last year. Spending was higher in Denmark than any other countries with users spending RMB 8,764 on average over the holiday. France and Italy also saw higher user spending.
Ahead of the Golden Week, Alipay expanded its service coverage to Iceland and the Maldives and now covers more than 110 countries and regions around the world.
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