Malaysia’s national payments network, PayNet, has partnered with major Asian payment platforms Alipay+ and Weixin Pay (also known as WeChat Pay) to encourage more spending by Chinese and regional tourists in Malaysia.
In a statement on Tuesday, PayNet said that with the summer travel season starting, both Alipay+ and Weixin Pay are launching special promotions to highlight Malaysia as a top travel destination.
These efforts aim to make spending in Malaysia easier for tourists by using PayNet’s DuitNow QR system, helping visitors enjoy smoother and more rewarding travel experiences.
Tourists using AlipayCN, Alipay+ partner apps, or Weixin Pay can pay in Malaysia simply by scanning a DuitNow QR code — no need to download a new app.
Their usual e-wallets from home work at over 2.5 million shops and businesses across the country.
From restaurants and hotels to souvenir shops and tour services, this improved payment system makes travel easier and more convenient for tourists. It also helps local businesses, especially small and medium ones (MSMEs), get more attention and benefit from tourist spending.
Right now, Alipay+ supports 15 international payment apps in Malaysia, including Alipay for Chinese travellers.
During the busy travel season in December 2024, Alipay+ payments through DuitNow QR helped Malaysian businesses earn six times more compared to the same period the year before.
“This is what smart tourism looks like, seamless for travellers, transformative for our MSMEs,
“By enabling tourists to use their home wallets via DuitNow QR, we are opening up more than 2.5 million Malaysian businesses, many of them small and family-run, to global spending power. It’s a digital solution with real-world economic impact,” said PayNet Chief Marketing Officer Gary Yeoh.
This partnership between PayNet, Alipay+, and Weixin Pay also aims to help participating businesses increase their sales by 20% during the summer travel season.
In the long term, the campaign supports Malaysia’s goal of becoming a top destination for cashless tourism while helping more local businesses start using digital payments.
Tourism Malaysia’s Director General, Manoharan Periasamy, said the summer campaigns are important for reaching the goal of six million Chinese tourist visits this year.
He believes that making travel in Malaysia easy, friendly, and convenient is the best way to attract more visitors.
“With DuitNow QR accepted via Alipay+ and Weixin Pay, tourists can enjoy a smoother, more enjoyable travel experience,
“This initiative not only adds comfort and familiarity for our guests but also creates meaningful opportunities for local businesses and boosts the overall tourism economy,” he added.
As tourist arrivals to Malaysia continue to grow, the partnership between PayNet, Alipay+, and Weixin Pay showcases the power of digital payments to fuel economic growth, said the statement.
Building on this momentum, the goal for 2025 is to grow DuitNow QR payments through Alipay+ and Weixin Pay by more than 130% compared to last year.
The statement said this summer campaign is a big step toward strengthening Malaysia’s tourism economy and connecting it more closely with the region. It helps local businesses grow and makes payments easier for tourists using popular mobile apps they already trust.
PayNet is Malaysia’s national payments network. Its mission is to speed up digital payments by making them easier to use, more widely available, and safe.
PayNet offers a full range of payment services — including DuitNow (QR and transfers), JomPAY (for bills), FPX (online payments), MyDebit (for cards), MEPS, and IBG (bank transfers). These services are used across the country and are an important part of everyday life in Malaysia.
Additionally, PayNet’s real-time retail QR payments network, DuitNow, is interoperable with domestic schemes in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, facilitating seamless cross-border transactions with these countries.
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