Retail in Asia

In Trends

Google’s Android Pay arrives in Hong Kong

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Android Pay, Google’s mobile payments service for phones running the OS, arrived in Hong Kong on Wednesday, 19 October 2016.

The launch will allow Android handset owners to use their devices to complete transactions at more than 5,000 retail locations in Hong Kong, including 7-Eleven, Circle K, McDonald’s and Fortress, Google said in a statement.

The search giant’s latest attempt to spur people into paying for items using their phone launched in in the US in September 2015, followed by the UK, Singapore and Australia.

This isn’t Google’s first ride at the mobile payments rodeo. Five years ago, it made a foray into credit cards and payments using a service called Google Wallet. But few retailers supported it, a couple of wireless service providers disabled it, and it didn’t always work.

Android Pay will also store gift cards and loyalty cards on phones powered by the mobile software. It will support MasterCard and Visa cards from BEA, DBS, Dah Sing Bank, Hang Seng Bank, HSBC, and Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong.

(Source: CNET)