Uber Expands Cooperation With Alibaba’s Alipay
Uber Technologies Inc. is expanding its cooperation with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s online-payment affiliate, allowing Chinese users to pay for rides with Alipay while traveling outside mainland China.
Uber and Alipay are working closely despite the fact that Alibaba holds a stake in rival Chinese ride-hailing service Didi Kuaidi Joint Co.as well as Uber’s biggest U.S. rival, Lyft Inc.
In China, Uber users can already pay for their rides using Alipay, China’s most popular online payment service operated by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial Services Group. The new partnership, announced Monday, extends their cooperation beyond mainland China. Uber said in a statement that the cross-border payment services with Alipay will first start with Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan this month, and “will be extended to more regions around the world during the year.”
Intensifying competition in China’s ride-hailing and mobile payment services is spreading beyond the domestic market. Like Uber, Didi Kuaidi is also planning to expand its services for outbound Chinese travelers through its partnership with Lyft. Didi Kuaidi invested in Lyft last year by participating in a fundraising round that closed in May, according to people familiar with the matter. Starting in the first quarter of this year, Didi Kuaidi’s Chinese customers will be able to book Lyft rides overseas using Chinese online payment systems, a Didi Kuaidi spokeswoman said. The company plans to roll out further cross-border products throughout this year.
Uber’s partnership with Alipay draws a contrast to the tense relationship it has with another Chinese Internet giant, Tencent Holdings Ltd. Like Alibaba, Tencent has also invested in Didi Kuaidi and Lyft.
In October, Uber Chief Executive Travis Kalanick said at the WSJDLive conference that users of Tencent’s WeChat messaging and social media application were unable to tap Uber and news articles shared in WeChat appeared to favor Didi Kuaidi. Tencent had blocked Uber from WeChat last year, citing the company had violated some of WeChat’s marketing rules.
Didi Kuaidi and Tencent have been working closely. WeChat, which has about 650 million monthly active users, comes with a ride-hailing button that directs users to Didi Kuaidi’s service. Users can pay for rides with WeChat’s own mobile payment service, which is competing fiercely with Alipay. Alipay so far accounts for the majority of mobile payment transactions in China.
In China, Uber accepts multiple payment methods including Alipay and another online payment service run by Chinese search provider Baidu Inc., but its payment options don’t include WeChat Pay.
Eva Dou contributed to this article.
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