Alibaba has announced that its Taobao and Tmall e-commerce platforms will soon allow users to make payments through Tencent’s WeChat Pay, marking the first time such an option has been available. This change breaks away from Alibaba’s previous practice of primarily supporting its affiliate Ant Group’s Alipay as a payment method. The move is seen as an effort to boost Alibaba’s e-commerce growth in China, where the company faces competition from rivals such as JD.com and PDD. The integration is expected to begin this month, according to a source familiar with the details.
WeChat, a dominant mobile app in China with over 1.3 billion users globally, also offers WeChat Pay, one of the country’s largest mobile payment platforms. By allowing WeChat Pay as an option, Alibaba aims to reach a broader audience, particularly in less developed regions of China, potentially expanding its market share. The change also reflects a shift in the Chinese tech industry, where regulatory pressure has urged companies like Alibaba and Tencent to dismantle their “walled gardens” and allow greater interoperability between their platforms.
In recent years, both Alibaba and Tencent have taken steps to open up their services. For example, Tencent began allowing external links in WeChat chats in 2021, including links to Alibaba’s platforms. This latest development follows Alibaba’s completion of a three-year regulatory rectification process, which included a substantial antitrust fine imposed by Chinese regulators in 2021.
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