In a strategic move to influence international users, ride sharing company Uber has announced a new partnership with mobile payment app Alipay. Riders will now be able to hail a ride and pay for it within the Alipay app. This comes after the announcement of a similar partnership between rival ride sharing service Lyft and Chinese company Didi.
The announcement is an extension of the two company’s previous relationship, wherein only people traveling in China could utilize the technology. Now users will be able to utilize Alipay – China’s most popular payment app – to gain access to Ubers, without the worry of currency or language barriers. The service will be available in all 69 countries where Uber operates.
Partnership Widens Access
Alipay, a division of Chinese firm Alibaba, already has 450 million users. The partnership with Uber will essentially promote Uber as a service to a captive audience already out using the app to spend money. Previously, Uber customers could only use Alipay for rides in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau.
“There are very few partnerships that have the scale,” said Emil Michael, Uber’s senior vice president of business. He notes that the deal also extends to India-based payment app Paytm, meaning two of the most-populous countries in the world will now have easy access to Uber’s services.
Alibaba Aims to Strengthen its Global Domination
The deal is meant to help Uber compete with rival Lyft, who teamed up with Chinese mobile payment app Didi last month. Interestingly enough, Alibaba also has an economic interest in Didi, as well as Ant Financial, which operates the Alipay app, leading to some accusing the Chinese conglomerate of playing both sides of the coin.
“Our partnership with Uber is not in conflict with Lyft and Didi, as we are simply providing more options for our Alipay users,” Eric Jing, president of Ant Financial Services Group, said in a statement. “We will continue to look for more global partners to give Alipay users more scenarios for using the mobile app.”
The announcement comes as more and more Chinese travel abroad, many of whom do not have credit cards and use mobile payments instead of cash. Last year, Chinese nationals took 120 million trips abroad, according to the China National Tourism Administration, which expects that number to hit 200 million by 2020.
“We believe we’re just getting started,” said Uber China’s senior vice president of corporate strategy, Zhen Liu. “This partnership is critical to our continued China strategy.”