Not long after Cupertino announced its plans to bring its Apple Pay to the East with China UnionPay, Samsung isn't one to get behind and spread word that the South Korean tech giant has secured the very same deal to launch its mobile payment system in China. With UnionPay having a monopoly on payment terminals in China, Samsung's agreement with the company was a definite essential.
"With technological innovation, Samsung Pay expands the usage of mobile payments. It simplifies the procedure for better user experience, and adopts multi-layered protection to guarantee security, allowing easier and safer mobile payment experiences. The collaboration with China UnionPay, coupled with the support from major UnionPay partner banks in China, will bring this secure and easy-to-use mobile payment solution to more Samsung mobile users," Injong Rhee, Executive Vice President at Samsung Electronics, said.
Reports suggest that both Samsung's and Apple's mobile payment system are hoping to get certified and approved quickly, seeing that Chinese New Year is already looming, with Feb. 8 of next year the exact date. However, even if both companies miss the date, Samsung Pay and Apple Pay in China will serve as a major importance in the future as the Chinese market has seen a tremendous surge during Nov. 11 of this year, also known as Singles' Day or 11/11.
In Samsung's press release, the company highlights that the products and technologies that Samsung Pay uses strictly comply with China's national mobile payment and financial industry standards. Furthermore, the company's mobile payment system will also be receiving relevant tests as well as certification required by Chinese regulators before Samsung's platform officially rolls out to Unionpay cardholders in China, and will be available to UnionPay cardholders as early as next year.
The collaboration between the South Korean tech giant and China UnionPay will allow cardholders to manage and use their credit cards and debit cards on smartphones through Samsung Pay, therefore bringing simplicity, wider coverage and high-level security in payment systems.
