UnionPay International has launched a new platform to push its mobile payments beyond mainland China. The UnionPay International Mobile Payment Service, or UMPS, was announced in Shanghai on March 15, 2018.
UMPS works through an open API. Through it, commercial banks, retailers, phone makers and third-party payment firms outside mainland China can plug into UnionPay’s mobile products. These include UnionPay mobile QuickPass and UnionPay QR code payment. Cai Jianbo, the company’s CEO, said the platform would help roll those products out around the world.
From single products to platforms
The launch reflects a shift in strategy. Instead of building one product at a time, UnionPay International now builds platforms. Besides UMPS, it has developed a TSP, the U Plan, a cross-border B2B platform, a TSM platform and an HCE cloud platform. Together they cover mobile payments, tokenization, tax refunds and digital marketing.
Some of this was already in use. At a Macau food festival late last year, more than 150 restaurants accepted UnionPay QR payments. In Hong Kong, cardholders got perks for paying by QR code at Colourmix. And in Singapore, holders of UnionPay cards from Bank of China’s local branch could pay by QR code through the BOC E-wallet.
For shoppers, a payment takes only seconds. Because of tokenization, the real card number is never stored on the phone. Smaller merchants can add QR payments without changing their hardware, while large stores and chains get QR tools that handle both payments and discounts. Phone makers, in turn, can connect their own Trusted Service Managers to UMPS and build payment features into their devices.
Where the network stands
UnionPay QR code payment was accepted in 13 countries and regions across Asia Pacific, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Mobile QuickPass worked at more than one million POS terminals outside mainland China, in 18 countries and regions such as Singapore, Australia, Canada and Russia. In 2017, transaction counts and volumes for both products outside the mainland grew dozens of times over.
The plans for 2018 were broad. Using UMPS, UnionPay intended to take Huawei Pay to global markets, with Russia as the first country outside mainland China. QR payments were due to arrive in Tajikistan, Japan, Cambodia and Suriname during the year. The company also planned to work with major institutions in Hong Kong, Kenya and Nepal on international versions of the UnionPay app or e-wallets.