Introduction
Alipay is an online payment platform operated by Ant Financial Services Group, which is an affiliate to the Chinese Alibaba Group. Established in 2004, Alipay is one of the largest payment systems in the world, which has more than 800 million active users, more than 85 million transactions handled per day and more than 300 domestic financial institution partners. It serves as an escrow service for online transactions between sellers and buyers.
History
Alipay was founded by Jack Ma of Alibaba Group in February 2004 as Alipay.com. On March 28, 2005, Alipay was spun off from the Alibaba Group and became a wholly owned subsidiary of the parent company. On August 6, 2010, Alipay expanded its service to international markets with the launch of Alipay in the US.
Nowadays, Alipay is the most popular online payment service in the Chinese physical market, covering over 390,000 of the top offline merchants in both target and tier-2 cities. In June 2015, Alipay was the world’s leading third-party payment platform, with over 450 million users and over 200 million transactions processed each day.
Features
Alipay is one of the most convenient ways to pay for goods and services in China, allowing users to pay with their phones and access their bank accounts for payment. It also offers a range of features that make it easier for users to manage their money.
Alipay has a “favorites” feature that allows users to quickly locate and pay for their favorite merchants using the app, as well as a “quick pay” feature that allows users to pay for goods and services without going through the checkout process. The app also offers a money transfer service, which allows users to send money to other Alipay users for free.
Additionally, Alipay offers a range of financial services, including credit card and loan repayment, wealth management, mutual aid, insurance, and financial planning.
Conclusion
Alipay is an online payment platform that offers a convenient, secure, and straightforward way to pay for goods or services in China. Originally created as a simple way for users to make payments using their mobile phones and access their bank accounts, the platform has now grown to become one of the largest payment systems in the world.
Alipay’s range of features, including favorites, quick payments, money transfers, and financial services, have made it popular among Chinese consumers. As such, it is likely that Alipay will continue to grow and become an important payment method in China in the years to come.
