Hong Kong Becomes Battleground for Digital Payment Firms

Accenture’s Fergus Gordon recently said that digital payment firms have been flocking to Hong Kong to capture first mover advantage in the region, with tech giants such as Tencent and Alibaba bringing their payment platforms in the shopping city that has long thrived on cash and credit cards.

It is said that the ubiquity of Octopus, a popular stored value card, in Hong Kong will serve as an obstacle to the adoption of mobile payments. However, it was reported that Octopus’ net profits have already fallen by one-third in 2017.

A recent survey also showed that while AliPay and WeChat Pay have become the most used mobile payment methods in Hong Kong, usage rate was just at 22% and 19% respectively.     

 

Source: Reuters