CANCAN Teams With WorldFirst Payments Platform; Westpac Launches Mobile Deposits

Welcome to The Axis, your late look at payments news from around the world. Coverage includes CANCAN and WorldFirst’s rollout of a platform for WeChat Pay and Alipay payments in Europe. In addition, Alipay payments spiked at international destinations during a public holiday in China, and Australia’s Westpac is giving its customers the ability to make mobile check deposits.

CANCAN and WorldFirst teamed up to roll out a payments and marketing platform for WeChat Pay and Alipay in Europe and other parts of the world, the companies said in an announcement. The platform is being rolling out in Italy with Dufrital, which is part of duty-free operator Dufry Group. In the announcement, CANCAN Managing Director Candice Koo said, “CANCAN and WorldFirst are excited to be the first company to offer an integrated solution for both wallets in Italy, in the same way we offer global merchants a single integration that covers payments across China, Asia, Australia, North America and Europe.”

And the use of Alipay mobile payments jumped at international destinations during a public holiday in China, ZDNet reported. Among the top destinations for Chinese consumers were the Bicester Village outlet shopping mall in the U.K., where Alipay payments surged by 90-fold, and the Dotonbori commercial zone in Japan, where Alipay payments jumped by 70-fold. In addition, Alipay payments jumped by 55-fold at Sydney Airport in Australia. Thailand and Italy, among other destinations, also appeared on Alipay’s top 10 list that was unveiled on Sunday (Oct. 7). In all, cashless commerce has become popular with consumers in China: Nielsen data reports that 90 percent of travelers from China prefer to make mobile payments.

In Australia, Westpac is launching mobile check deposit to allow customers to scan and deposit checks by using their smartphones, according to reports. To use the feature, customers take a photo of the front and back of their checks. The checks then typically clear within three business days. Westpac Consumer Bank Chief Executive George Frazis noted that the bank continues to take in over 30,000 checks each day, and said the bank rolled out the feature “to offer customers even more choice and convenience in how they do their banking.”