Modern city embraces new e-payment platforms

Posters advertise the availability of cellphone payments at a supermarket in Hangzhou. Long Wei / For China Daily

Having no cash or forgetting your credit card is no longer a source of embarrassment in Hangzhou, which is fast building up a reputation as a smart city with a plethora of new ways to settle a bill.

Nationally, online and mobile payments already go well beyond shopping, covering fields from transportation to dining and travel, tourism and finance. Mobile payment options are present in all aspects of daily life, accounting for as much as 65 percent of total online payments.

The trend is even more apparent and popular in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, which is home to a number of leading internet companies, including Alibaba.

Mobile payments in the city can be used for car rentals, buses, taxis and even parking - if you can find a space.

Earlier this year, a time-sharing car rental service called Pand-auto was launched in the city, offering a new type of green transportation. Users can rent an electric new energy car through the accompanying app and the entire process, from registration to booking and payments, can be done on your mobile phone.

There is also the internet bus, which not only allows passengers to buy a ticket in advance, but also guarantees a seat, which is popular among those who have a long journey ahead of them, especially during the morning or evening rush hour.

Passengers can follow the Chelaile or UBUS account on WeChat, which also acts as the payment platform. Although there are not many internet buses on the road right now, they are gaining in popularity.

"I'm already too tired after a busy day, and it is frustrating for me to be sandwiched among the crowds on a bus," said a 26-year-old internet bus passenger.

Earlier this year, a Quickpass service was also introduced in Hangzhou, allowing taxi passengers to pay by swiping their bank card, or near field communication-enabled mobile phone, on a compatible point-of-sale terminal.

According to Hangzhou Taxi Group, 400 taxis have already adopted the new payment service, with an additional 2,000 taxis planning to upgrade soon.

Elsewhere in the city, parking can be paid for through Alipay's smart parking service, while both WeChat and Alipay are widely accepted everywhere from the smallest roadside food stand to the fanciest five-star rated hotel.

Popular group buying app Meituan has more than 700 registered restaurants based in the Hangzhou urban area, and the country's leading life service platform Baidu Nuomi has more than 28,000 registered restaurants. All of these businesses accept mobile payments and some also offer special discounts to customers. These rewards and discounts are exclusively for customers who pay through their mobile phones.

The city's major food markets are also building up an appetite for these new methods of payment.

Seven food markets in Hangzhou have started to utilize the service, including the Hanlin Food Market, where nearly all stalls accept mobile payments.

"Now more and more young people like to pay through mobile phones, which accounts for more than 10 percent of daily turnover," said Wang Anmin, who runs a vegetable stall in the market.

"In the past, these food business operators had to prepare a lot of small change. The new payment method is more convenient. It also reduces the risks of counterfeit money," said a person from Hangzhou Market Development Service Company, who requested anonymity, but added that more local food markets in the city would launch mobile payment services next year.

Contact the writers at shixf@chinadaily.com.cn