Wirecard brings Chinese payments to Austria
Wirecard, the digital fintech, and Tirol Werbung, the tourism organisation of the Austrian state of Tyrol, are launching a new China Pay initiative to enable a state-wide coverage of Wirecard’s mobile payment solution.
Alipay and other (unspecified) Chinese payments now welcome tourists in Austria
With this initiative, the state of Tyrol wants to offer Alipay, among others, as a payment option in as many businesses as possible. Wirecard is responsible for the entire payment integration and processing operations.
Initially, 150 businesses in the region will be equipped with the solution.
Roland Toch, managing director CEE at Wirecard, says: “Experience shows that accepting Alipay as a new payment method can lead to an increase in transaction volume with travellers from China of more than 350% within one year.”
The initiative has been launched in partnership with Innsbruck Tourism, Kitzbühel Tourism, the Kufsteinerland Tourism Association, Ötztal Tourism, the St. Anton Tourism Association and the Swarovski Kristallwelten.
According to a Nielsen study, around 91% of Chinese tourists would be willing to spend and buy more abroad if more merchants accepted Chinese mobile payment methods.
A 2018 report found that total spending by Chinese tourists in Austria had increased by 28% over the previous year, making China the top spending country for tax-free purchases in the Alpine nation among non-European countries.
