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You can now use Apple Pay on the subway in Shanghai and Beijing
QR code payments still dominate in China but NFC is gaining ground
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This article originally appeared on ABACUS
China is addicted to QR codes: The weird black-and-white square powers the country’s mobile payments, allowing people to buy everything from groceries to train tickets. It’s one of the main reasons why Apple Pay -- which uses NFC instead -- has been struggling to catch on in the country.
But Apple is forging ahead anyway -- introducing its payment services to commuters on trains, buses and ferries in Beijing and Shanghai.
Apple Pay landed in China in 2016, but today more than 90% of consumers paying with their smartphones still use either Alibaba or Tencent’s QR-based services. Fewer than 3% use Apple Pay or other apps. (Abacus is a unit of the South China Morning Post, which is owned by Alibaba.)
Cost is a major barrier: NFC requires special and often expensive hardware for shops, and a high-end smartphone for consumers. But QR codes are much simpler. All a consumer needs is a phone with a camera. And all a shop needs is the code itself!
But phone makers haven’t given up on NFC -- a far more secure technology than QR codes. Xiaomi, for example, has supported NFC payment on public transport since 2016. Today, it’s available not only in Beijing and Shanghai, but also Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, and eight other regions across the country. CEO Lei Jun even touted the function on its latest flagship phone during an event last week. Similar features are also available on handsets from Samsung, Huawei and a few other Chinese brands.
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