Following the introduction of Android Pay in Singapore and Australia earlier in this year, Hong Kong is the third location in the Asia Pacific region to roll out the service.
„Whether you’re heading out to buy groceries, grabbing a cup of coffee, or picking up some egg tarts for your family and friends, now your Android phone is all you need as you walk out the door. Starting today, Android Pay is available in Hong Kong to help you speed through purchases in stores and in apps.”, says Pali Bhat, senior director – product management Google.
„Hongkongers can now use Android Pay at over 5,000 locations in Hong Kong where contactless payments are accepted. Android Pay also stores your gift cards, loyalty cards and special offers right on your phone.” add Bhat.
To get started, download the app from Google Play. It’s available on all Android devices that are NFC-enabled, supporting Google Play Services, and running on KitKat 4.4 or higher.
„Android Pay works with MasterCard and Visa cards from BEA, DBS, Dah Sing Bank, Hang Seng Bank, HSBC, and Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong. You can add multiple cards (there’s no limit to how many you can add) and select which card you want to use before you pay, so you can always enjoy the best deals available.”, Bhat says.
As an open platform, Android Pay is available to merchants that want to push mobile payments forward. In-store merchants can access the Android Pay Merchant Help Centre or reach out to acquirer partners such as DBS, First Data and Hang Seng to learn more about accepting contactless payments.
„For online merchants, just visit the Android Pay API developer site to learn how to accept Android Pay in your app. We’re working with payment processors such as: Adyen, Braintree, First Data, Global Payments, Stripe and Worldpay to make enabling Android Pay in Hong Kong simple and easy.” the company says.
A recent Mastercard survey revealed that two in five Hongkongers shop on their smartphones, with an increasing number of people choosing to use digital wallets in their daily lives.
“Hongkongers love mobile — with almost eight out of 10 (79%) owning a smartphone — and are some of the fastest adopters of new products and technology in the world. We’re excited to bring the simplicity and security of mobile payments to Hong Kong with Android Pay. People can now easily tap and pay with Android smartphones in stores and in apps when they’re on-the-go,” says Leonie Valentine, Managing Director of Sales and Operations, Google Hong Kong.
„With a mobile subscriber penetration rate reaching 227.9 percent and nearly 17 million mobile subscribers in Hong Kong, this makes it natural for people to use mobiles for payments. With the introduction of Android Pay, it will help displace cash and propel electronic payments in the city. Visa is pleased to work with Google to introduce Android Pay, enabled by Visa Token Service for secure payments,” said Caroline Ada, Country Manager of Visa Hong Kong and Macau.
Banking 4.0 – „how was the experience for you”
„So many people are coming here to Bucharest, people that I see and interact on linkedin and now I get the change to meet them in person. It was like being to the Football World Cup but this was the World Cup on linkedin in payments and open banking.”
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