PayPal Reaches Deeper Into China With UnionPay Partnership
- European merchants can accept popular Chinese cards on PayPal
- Deal could help western sellers reach Chinese shoppers
The PayPal application is arranged for a photograph on an Apple Inc. iPhone in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Friday, April 22, 2016. PayPal Holdings Inc. is scheduled to release first-quarter earnings figures on April 27.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergPayPal Holdings Inc. said it’s joining with China UnionPay Co. in the digital-payments company’s latest global push to find more customers and better position itself in cross-border e-commerce.
Merchants in European countries will be able to accept payments from UnionPay credit and debit cards through PayPal’s Braintree platform designed for mobile commerce, San Jose, California-based PayPal said Thursday in a statement. Adding a familiar payment option is a key step to enabling cross-border e-commerce, so the partnership will increase PayPal’s appeal to European merchants looking to reach Chinese shoppers. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. uses a similar strategy to introduce foreign goods to Chinese shoppers through it’s payments service.