UnionPay, Wirecard Team Up For Global Expansion

Wirecard and UnionPay have partnered up and signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand globally, according to a release.

The agreement between the two companies is meant to help support UnionPay’s continuous push for international growth while also fueling Wirecard’s presence in China.

UnionPay has issued more than 7.59 billion cards, which makes up about 57.6 percent of the cards in circulation around the world. The agreement means the companies will both focus on UnionPay’s global as a digital, omnichannel payment method.

The two companies also plan to introduce a number of projects, which will include Supplier and Commission Payments (SCP) as well as consumer-facing products like digital wallets for tourists entering China.

“As the world’s largest card scheme in terms of card issuance, UnionPay will be one of our key alliances in Asia,” said Georg von Waldenfels, EVP of group business development at Wirecard. “We’re excited about the immense potential this partnership creates for both entities, and to deliver innovative solutions for current and future UnionPay cardholders globally. As a major tourist and business destination, China receives hundreds of millions of travelers every year, which means that the scope of our solutions will also address non-Chinese nationals and enable them to pay with UnionPay nationwide.”

Larry Wang, vice president at UnionPay International, said he was excited about the partnership.

“Through our global strategic partnership with Wirecard, we plan to continue driving our international expansion forward,” Wang said. “We are proud to have an experienced partner in digital financial technology and global payments by our side to provide an even wider range of innovative solutions for UnionPay customers. We look forward to launching our partnership with Wirecard.”

The partnership will launch with a focus on finding additional projects for both companies in the U.S., Asia-Pacific and Europe.