Ant International becomes first overseas partner of China’s cross-border payment gateway

Ant International becomes first overseas partner of China’s cross-border payment gateway

Ant International has officially become the first Foreign Institution Partner (FIP) of China’s Cross-Border Interconnection Payment Gateway (CPG), enabling seamless transactions between international digital wallets and more than 80 million merchants using Alipay in China.

Senior executives from leading international digital wallets experience seamless payments in China. — Photo Courtesy of Ant International

 Ant International has officially become the first Foreign Institution Partner (FIP) of China’s Cross-Border Interconnection Payment Gateway (CPG), enabling seamless transactions between international digital wallets and more than 80 million merchants using Alipay in China.

Together with Alipay, Ant International is the largest entity within the CPG framework, boasting the widest range of applications, the highest number of wallet and card partners, and the largest transaction volume.

The launch of the CPG mechanism is expected to improve connectivity efficiency and system stability for global payment partners, while providing safer and smoother access to the Chinese market.

Alipay+, Ant International’s cross-border payment and digitalisation platform, is leveraging the CPG connection to expand its global ecosystem.

Serving as a unified digital wallet gateway, the platform currently partners with 36 digital wallets and eight national QR payment systems, linking 1.8 billion user accounts with more than 100 million merchants worldwide.

Through Alipay+, consumers from seven major card brands and 12 countries and regions can make “scan-and-pay” transactions across mainland China.

The platform also maintains technology partnerships with more than 20 digital wallets and payment networks across Asia, Europe, and other regions.

Beyond commercial collaboration, it supports government-led mobile payment initiatives in emerging markets, fostering digitalisation and inclusive growth.

Its network includes national QR systems such as SGQR (Singapore), DuitNow (Malaysia), ZeroPay (South Korea), Bakong (Cambodia), FonePay (Nepal), LankaPay (Sri Lanka), QRIS (Indonesia) and HUMO (Uzbekistan).

The Asia-Pacific region recorded US$9.8 trillion in digital wallet transactions in 2023, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the global total and maintaining the world’s highest penetration rate.

Headquartered in Singapore, Ant International operates across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America, offering digital payments and fintech solutions to businesses and financial institutions of all sizes. 

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