Ant Group’s Alipay+ D-store solution to accelerate digital stores

• Encourage the ecosystem of digital platforms to work together and hasten the global service industry’s digitalization
• More than 2,000 local eateries have used the Alipay+ D-store solution in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and other regions

Digital payments are the way of the future, as is digital consumption. Digitalization of the banking and payment systems is crucial, which cannot be understated. Digital banking and mobile payments had experienced rapid growth even before the epidemic began, notably in emerging economies worldwide. Due to the highly comfortable service they offer their customers, businesses are slowly adopting the development of digital stores.

Although digital banking and mobile payments experienced rapid growth, the pandemic has sped up the development of digital payments, with mobile wallets, particularly, seeing a sharp increase in popularity. As the use of mobile wallets among consumers and businesses grows, especially in fast-growing markets like Southeast Asia, the world’s payment infrastructures are being digitally transformed.

Helping companies build digital stores at scale

An example of this is Ant Group. At the Singapore FinTech Festival 2022, Ant Group officially unveiled its Alipay+ D-store. Alipay+ D-store is a business digital tool that helps brick-and-mortar companies digitalize their operations to increase productivity and efficiency.

Alipay+ D-store is an integrated one-stop solution that companies can use to quickly, scalably, and affordably build digital stores across multiple platforms. It offers a suite of toolkits to digitalize merchants’ payments, operations, services, and marketing, opening up new revenue opportunities and providing customers with better services.

Businesses may have digital storefronts in the form of short programs on digital platforms. Digital stores could also be created as H5 pages that could be quickly and readily incorporated online and on social media to reach customers. Alipay+ D-store currently works with Chope, Alipay, Touch’ n Go eWallet, AlipayHK, and other digital platforms.

According to Dr. Cherry Huang, Global Head of Alipay+ D-store, leveraging digital technologies is essential for the service sectors to increase operational efficiency and respond to the rapidly shifting market conditions.

“The Alipay+ D-store solution is developed with the goal to make it easier for brick-and-mortar businesses to go digital at scale, so that businesses can better serve and engage digital-savvy consumers by providing a seamless omni-channel experience,” She added. “We welcome more digital platforms to collaborate to accelerate the digitalization of the global service industry together.”

Following the designation of the food and beverage (F&B) sector as a priority industry, more than 2,000 regional restaurants, cafes, and eateries in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and other markets have adopted the Alipay+ D-store solution. These brands include the fast food chain Burger King and Koufu, one of Singapore’s most renowned and significant operators and managers of food courts and coffee shops.

Huggs Coffee, one of Singapore’s leading locally-owned café chain brands specializing in coffee with over 20 outlets, was also introduced by Alipay+ D-store as its newest client at the Festival. In the future, customers will be able to access seamless services through Huggs’ digital shop on Chope and other platforms thanks to its collaboration with Alipay+ D-store to digitalize its stores and operations.

Expanding partnerships with leading mobile payment providers

Ant Group is betting more in partnerships and investments in Southeast Asia’s rapidly expanding digital payments industry to navigate a more restrictive regulatory climate at home.

Realizing the promising potential in Southeast Asia, Ant recently established a partnership with Indonesian fintech firm Akulaku that enables its consumers to use Alipay+. With the new collaboration, Alipay+’s ecosystem now has 13 digital partners.

Not to forget that back in September, Alipay+ announced a collaboration with major Asian e-wallets to support cashless travel in South Korea. When visiting South Korea, customers of e-wallets like AlipayHK, GCash (the Philippines), Touch ‘n Go eWallet (Malaysia), and TrueMoney (Thailand) can make purchases at more than 120,000 merchants using their native mobile payment apps.

Leading mobile payment companies from Southeast Asia and Hong Kong will now be able to extend the availability of their services in South Korea via Alipay+ for the first time, thanks to the partnership. The initial phase of the merchant roll-out includes payments for cab rides, duty-free shopping, convenience stores, and chain restaurants and bars.

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