Singtel and Advanced Info Service (AIS) in collaboration with Kasikornbank (KBank) have officially launched Via, claiming Asia's first cross-border mobile payment alliance and enabling consumers to use their local mobile wallets while travelling abroad.
The Via alliance is the first initiative of its kind to connect both telecom and non-telecom mobile wallets across borders to create a region-wide payment network, starting between Singapore and Thailand.
Singtel will progressively expand the alliance to other regional associates such as Airtel in India, Globe in the Philippines and Telkomsel in Indonesia, working within each country's regulations.
"We are building up a real digital ecosystem in the region through the Via platform under the payment alliance," said Arthur Lang, chief executive of Singtel's international group. "It is not a closed loop, but rather opens up the market to all parties, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises of the region."
The Via alliance is aimed at unifying Asia's fragmented payment scene by connecting different mobile wallet systems and strengthening digital economies across the region.
Singtel now offers QR code mobile payment through mobile wallets, known as Singtel Dash, to 500,000 users. AIS provides AIS Global Pay and Rabbit Line Pay in Thailand.
The Via service is accessible to more than 42 million Line chat users in Thailand. Among them are more than 5 million Rabbit Line Pay users who, after KYC (Know Your Customer) processing, just need to download AIS Global Pay to use the e-wallet feature on Rabbit Line Pay when in Singapore.
Of the 2.6 million merchants using QR code, more than 1.6 million are using KBank's system, from top shopping malls to street food vendors and transport providers.
Mr Lang said Via is a game-changer for Singtel and the region.
"As more people travel around the region, we want them to be able to enjoy the ease and familiarity of using their local mobile wallets abroad," he said. "Via will enhance the payment experience for millions of consumers, including our group's customer base of more than 700 million. We see a tremendous opportunity to drive the adoption of mobile payments, which supports Asean's push towards financial inclusion and a vision of a single digital market."
In 2017, there were more than 80 million tourist arrivals across Singtel's markets in Asia. Of these, more than 1.5 million visitors travelled between Singapore and Thailand.
AIS chief executive Somchai Lertsutiwong said the Via payment alliance differs from bigger rivals such as Alipay in terms of collaboration with local partners.
The partnership offers Thais a seamless digital payment experience at home and abroad, and it adds a new dimension that will take the cashless society to the next level, he said.
In addition, the Via alliance will promote Thailand's tourism sector in the digital era and is in line with the government's digital economy policy based on the Thailand 4.0 model.
Yuen Kuan Moon, chief executive for consumer at Singtel, said Dash customers not only stay connected with mobile roaming service when overseas, they also have a roaming wallet they can use to make purchases while abroad.
For small merchants that not accept credit and debit cards, adopting Via can be more cost-effective and can also expand the customer base.