BPS Technology inks deal with major Chinese mobile payment provider

BPS Technology has signed a deal with payment platform Alipay — which it hopes will lead to a slice of the $9 billion Chinese inbound tourist market.

BPS Technology chief executive Trevor Dietz, James Hudson from Alibaba Group (Alipay is a subsidiary of Alibaba) and Dave Garnier from BPS Technology.

BPS Technology has signed a landmark deal with Asian mobile-phone payment platform Alipay — which it hopes will result in a lucrative slice of the $9 billion Chinese inbound tourist market.

BPS will roll out the payment platform to part of its network of 36,000 merchants, enabling Chinese tourists to pay via their mobile phones for products and services, including accommodation, entertainment, car hire and food.

Gold Coast merchants, 150 to start with, will be the first to receive the technology and BPS is set to benefit by charging transaction and marketing fees.

BPS plans to roll out the service to 1200 of its merchants, on the Gold Coast, Sydney and Melbourne, this financial year.

The company has embarked on a roadshow to sell the deal to investors and merchants, with the listed firm hoping to gain new clients from outside its network.

Alipay, a subsidiary of Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba, is a popular payment method in China and for Chinese tourists abroad with a 54 per cent share of China’s US$5.5 trillion mobile payment market.

BPS Technology chief executive Trevor Dietz said the deal presented an opportunity for businesses to make inroads into the Chinese tourist market, which was worth $8.9 billion last year.

“For our existing and future merchants Alipay offers the potential to capture the business that walks past their doors every day, simply because Chinese tourists in Australia have no easy way of engaging with local retailers,” he said.

BPS Technology corporate adviser Dave Garnier said payment via mobile phone was common in China.

“Their preferred method payment method is their phone. They do not use cards.

“This deal will make us the largest provider of the Alipay platform in Australia,” he said.

He said the deal means customers can also pay via Alipay for goods and services before they arrive in Australia.

The service will be rolled out to merchants who have or want to market to Chinese tourists, such as entertainment, retail, accommodation, travel and hospitality businesses.

Alipay Australia and New Zealand head George Lawson said the agreement makes it easy for Chinese consumers to pay for services in Australia.

“This enables that objective, but further it uses many of the Alipay capabilities to enable BPS merchants to communicate with Chinese consumers before, during, and after travelling to Australia,” he said.

Earlier this year BPS signed an agreement with iSynergi, the service partner in Australia to Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba.com, to enable its merchants to be registered on Alibaba website-based platforms.

BPS reported a 120 per cent increase in revenue to $110.5 million for FY17 — driven in large part by $65.8 million generated by restaurant and activity guide Entertainment Publications.

Shares closed up 1¢ at 74¢.