Over the past few years, mobile payments has become a service that customers expect from their banks, FIs and e-commerce platforms. Most countries have their own idiosyncratic mobile payment platforms. In the US, we have PayPal-run P2P platform Venmo, and the bank-backed Zelle, among many others. If there is one overarching promise mobile payments makes, it is financial inclusion, whether in countries like India, where many people do not have bank accounts, or in more developed economies like the U.K, where many niche fintech startups are able to focus on a particular underbanked population thanks to mobile.
When it comes to financial inclusion, perhaps no one does it better than China’s Ant Financial-operated Alipay. In fact, according to fintech expert Chris Skinner, Alipay is aiming to have two billion active customers (not users or accounts), by 2025. This means it will gather users from areas outside of China (population 1.4 billion).
In the May edition of Fintech Unfiltered podcast, Skinner explained how, through technological advancements, open APIs and a partnership-oriented strategy, Alipay is advancing toward achieving that goal. Tune in below.
INV Fintech, Bank Innovation‘s sister accelerator, is a global accelerator that seeks startups that target any and all facets of the fintech ecosystem. The accelerator partners with technology companies, as well as banks to create the best possible startups, technologies and financial services products.