Alipay+, a global wallet gateway under Ant International, supports Kakao Pay, a leading South Korean mobile wallet, in launching NFC (Near-Field Communication) payment for overseas transactions, through its partnership with Mastercard. Kakao Pay becomes one of the first Alipay+ mobile payment partners to introduce the convenient and secure “tap-to-pay” experiences when its users travel abroad.
Through the collaboration between Alipay+ and Mastercard, Kakao Pay users can now make NFC payments at over 150 million Mastercard merchant locations worldwide, including in Japan, Southeast Asia, the U.S., Europe, Oceania and more. The Alipay+ NFC payment solution complements Kakao Pay’s existing QR code and barcode-based cross-border payments, further enhancing the travel and shopping experience for its users abroad.
NFC payments allow users to simply tap their NFC-enabled Android phone on a contactless POS terminal that accepts Mastercard. This simplifies cross-border commerce, reduces the need of carrying physical payments, and ensures transaction security through advanced authentication and encryption. This service is now available on the latest versions of the Kakao Pay app and will be introduced to the KakaoTalk app for Android later in September, with a sequential rollout planned for iOS (iPhone) in the future.
“Just as we do in South Korea, we aim to provide the most convenient and rewarding payment experience overseas,” said Seung Jun Oh, head of payment group, Kakao Pay. “Kakao Pay is becoming an essential travel and payment platform that accompanies users at every moment of their overseas trips and fulfils their needs.”
“People today expect payment experiences that are seamless, intuitive, and built into the apps they already trust—like Kakao Pay,” said Sandeep Malhotra, executive vice president, core payments, Asia Pacific, Mastercard. “Through this partnership, Mastercard is making overseas payments simpler and more secure for Korean users when they travel. Instead of thinking about how to pay, they can focus on what matters—feeling confident and enjoying the moment, wherever they are in the world.”
“Alipay+ aims to empower our mobile payment partners like Kakao Pay to reach more markets and deliver secure and convenient payment services to users,” said Douglas Feagin, President of Ant International. “By working with Mastercard, we are expanding digital payment acceptance to millions of merchants worldwide. Together, we are building a more inclusive and interoperable global payment ecosystem.”
