TerraPay & Alipay+ link wallets for QR payments abroad

TerraPay and Alipay+ have partnered to link TerraPay's Xend wallet network with Alipay+ for cross-border QR payments, initially covering 15 digital wallets in Africa.

Under the agreement, users of those wallets will be able to pay at more than 150 million merchants in the Alipay+ network. The deal expands TerraPay's cross-border offering beyond account-to-account transfers into in-store payments through QR code acceptance.

The companies are targeting travellers and wallet users whose domestic payment apps often do not work easily abroad. By linking to Alipay+, wallet providers connected to Xend will be able to let customers use their existing wallets to scan and pay at merchants in overseas markets.

The initial rollout focuses on African wallets connected to Xend, though the broader aim is to strengthen payment links for users across Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. Alipay+ says its network connects more than 50 international payment partners with merchants across 220 destination markets, including through more than 10 national payment systems.

Wallet access

The partnership reflects a wider push by payment firms to make digital wallets more useful outside their home markets. While wallet adoption has risen sharply in many countries, cross-border acceptance remains patchy, leaving consumers to rely on cash, foreign exchange counters or bank cards when travelling.

TerraPay has positioned Xend as a network designed to bridge that gap through a single connection for wallet providers. The model allows partners to offer international merchant acceptance without requiring users to download a new app or switch payment methods.

TerraPay describes itself as a cross-border payments company with links to bank accounts, cards and mobile wallets in multiple markets. It says its network reaches more than 7.5 billion bank accounts in more than 156 countries and supports cross-border access to 3.7 billion wallets through Xend.

For Alipay+, the agreement adds another group of wallets to a system that already connects international payment partners with a large merchant base. The company, part of Ant International, has been building its wallet gateway to let travellers pay abroad using familiar domestic apps, while merchants accept those payments through a single arrangement.

Cross-border demand

The deal comes as payment providers compete to capture more spending from travellers and from consumers who increasingly expect digital payment tools to work across borders. In many emerging markets, wallets have become a routine way to pay locally, but that experience often breaks down outside the country where the wallet was issued.

Industry groups have argued that better interoperability between wallets, banks and merchant networks could reduce friction for consumers and open new spending channels for merchants. QR payments have become one of the main routes to that interoperability because they can be deployed across a wide range of devices and point-of-sale setups.

Ambar Sur, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of TerraPay, described the tie-up as part of a broader effort to make domestic wallets usable internationally.

"The home wallet on your phone, that is from Kenya or Colombia or any country, should work the same way in Singapore or China or anywhere in the world, as easily as it does at home," said Ambar Sur, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of TerraPay.

"That's the promise of Xend. This partnership with Alipay+ is a major step toward making cross-border wallet payments as natural as paying locally."

Edward Yue, General Manager of Alipay+ Global Power Centre at Ant International, said the arrangement would widen access between users and merchants in different markets.

"By bringing TerraPay's network of wallets to Alipay+, we're helping more people and businesses connect across borders, creating new pathways for growth and unlocking new opportunities," said Edward Yue, General Manager of Alipay+ Global Power Centre at Ant International.

"This reflects our joint commitment to a more connected and inclusive global commerce ecosystem."