- Capital A is in discussions with Ant International to integrate
its cross-border digital payments, payment orchestration, marketing
and digitalization technology solutions to its entire business
ecosystem, including AirAsia, AirAsia MOVE, and BigPay;
- Both sides will also explore opportunities to promote inclusive
and sustainability impact to address global challenges, including
advancing digital inclusion, cultivating digital talent and
promoting sustainable travel program.
Ant International and Capital A Berhad, owner of AirAsia, have
formed a strategic collaboration in various areas, exploring to
integrate more local payments methods and providing payment
orchestration services to Capital A’s platforms, work on digital
marketing and sponsorship opportunities to drive business growth,
and cooperate to create inclusive and sustainable impact.
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The comprehensive partnership covers collaborative initiatives
between Ant International's Alipay+ cross-border payment, marketing
and digitalization technology solutions, payment orchestration
services, and other business segments, and flagship businesses
under Capital A, including AirAsia, the one-stop travel platform
AirAsia MOVE, and finance app BigPay.
Tony Fernandes, CEO of Capital A said, "We're thrilled to
embark on this transformative journey with Ant International. Their
global recognition as a financial technology powerhouse, coupled
with their unparalleled expertise, is poised to propel rapid growth
for our fintech venture BigPay and our online travel app (OTA)
AirAsia MOVE. Both entities are dedicated to agile expansion, and
this partnership promises to accelerate our collective mission of
providing seamless financial services and affordable travel
experiences to our customers worldwide.
Yang Peng, CEO of Ant International said, “We are very
excited to join hands with Capital A to start a new chapter of
cross-industry digitalization, building on the strong synergy
between us. By leveraging Ant International’s innovative digital
technology solutions and Capital A’s robust global ecosystem, we
can bring more seamless services and diversified growth pathways
for consumers and businesses in the region and beyond.”
Both sides agreed that AirAsia MOVE will work with Ant
International to integrate Alipay+ e-wallets as payment options
within the MOVE’s payment flows, and explore the use of various
Wallet Tech including super app related solutions as well as
developing mini-program within Alipay+ ecosystem.
In addition, AirAsia MOVE is to work with Ant International and
its partners in leveraging its user base to promote AirAsia MOVE’s
services, this could involve targeted promotions, exclusive deals
for Alipay+ partner wallet users, and cross platform visibility for
AirAsia MOVE’s services within the Alipay+ ecosystem. AirAsia MOVE
and Ant International will also work on joint marketing
opportunities and sponsorship opportunities for events such as UEFA
EURO 20241.
The two sides also agreed that BigPay will become the latest
Alipay+ partner wallet to allow its 1.5 million users to be able to
pay seamlessly when they travel abroad. It will also explore using
Alipay+ Wallet Tech, including fraud prevention and other
innovative technologies to develop an even stronger super app.
In the meantime, its airlines entity AirAsia will leverage Ant
International’s Airline Controller orchestration solution to drive
payment efficiency, work with Ant International to enable
acceptance of payment methods for online, offline and in-flight
checkout.
Capital A currently offers over 20 different products and
services leveraging off each other including the airline group -
AirAsia Aviation Group, AirAsia MOVE and BigPay fintech services,
serving over 700 million people in the region.
Global tourism sector has shown strong rebound and continued
resilience since last year as the latest UNWTO data2 highlighted
that international tourism receipts reached US$1.4 trillion in 2023
according to preliminary estimates, about 93% of the US$1.5
trillion earned by destinations in 2019.
Total export revenues from tourism (including passenger
transport) are estimated at US$1.6 trillion in 2023, almost 95% of
that in 2019, according to UNWTO.
Introduced in 2020, Alipay+ Cross-border Mobile Payment Service
now connects over 88 million merchants in 57 countries and regions
to 1.5 billion consumer accounts on over 25 e-wallets and banking
apps, allowing consumers to travel and pay worry-free globally, and
merchants to build out cross-border consumer engagement and digital
marketing.
The service builds on Alipay+’s extensive regional partnerships,
including those with national QR schemes including Singapore’s
SGQR, Malaysia’s PayNet, South Korea’s ZeroPay, Sri Lanka's
LankaPay and Cambodia’s KHQR.
Ant International and Capital A will also work together to
promote sustainability initiatives such as advancing global digital
inclusion, cultivating digital talent and promotion of sustainable
travel programs, as the two companies agreed.
“Ant International is dedicated to building a vibrant,
sustainable future digital economy with our technology and
cross-sector expertise. We look forward to expand our partnership
with global industry leaders like Capital A, to improve the way
people and commerce move around the world, and build closer bonds
between communities,” said Yang.
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About Ant International Headquartered in Singapore, Ant
International powers the future of global commerce with digital
innovation for everyone and every business to thrive. In close
collaboration with partners, we support merchants of all sizes
worldwide to realize their growth aspirations through a
comprehensive range of tech-driven digital payment and financial
services solutions.
About Capital A Capital A (formerly known as AirAsia
Group) is an investment holding company with a portfolio of
synergistic aviation and travel businesses that leverage data and
technology, including the world’s leading low-cost carrier AirAsia,
Capital A Aviation Services, AirAsia MOVE (formerly airasia
Superapp) and fintech BigPay, as well as logistics venture
Teleport. Capital A’s vision is to create and deliver products and
services that focus on offering the best value at the lowest cost,
underpinned by robust data accumulated over 20 years in operation
and one of Asia's leading brands that remains committed to serving
the underserved in Asean and beyond.
1 Ant International is an Official Partner of the UEFA EURO 2024
Berlin, the 17th edition of the international football championship
organized by Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). 2
https://www.unwto.org/news/international-tourism-to-reach-pre-pandemic-levels-in-2024
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240329404500/en/
Media Inquiries Ant International Li Tao tao.l@antgroup.com
Capital A Maryanna Kim maryannakim@airasia.com