Wirecard Enables Alipay Payments at Munich Airport

ASCHHEIM, Germany, June 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

• Chinese tourists can pay via the Alipay app 
• Offered by 69 eurotrade shops in Munich airport 

Wirecard AG is now working with eurotrade Flughafen München Handels-GmbH in the area of payment processing at the point of sale (POS). eurotrade, which is a subsidiary of Munich Airport GmbH, is a professional retailer specialising in the operation of airport shops and cooperates with many international brands that have shops at the airport. From mid-July 2016, the affiliated shops will be offering an expanded range of payment methods: Chinese tourists will be able to conveniently pay for any shopping at participating retailers in the arrivals and departures areas of Munich Airport via their mobile Alipay App. To this end, Wirecard has integrated Alipay Barcode Payment into eurotrade's central till system.

The Alipay mobile payment by barcode will be possible in all 69 eurotrade shops, at around 160 tills in total, both in the public area and the transfer zones. The technical integration at the POS has been carried out so as to facilitate further developments in the field of alternative payment procedures.

Sven Zahn, Managing Director of eurotrade Flughafen München Handels-GmbH: "Passengers from China are an important target group for retail at Munich Airport. We are delighted to soon be able to offer these visitors who have extremely high purchasing power the Chinese payment method Alipay in all our shops, which means currency exchange will no longer be required. With Wirecard, we have found a local, reliable partner who is providing comprehensive support as we introduce this solution."

Markus Eichinger, Head of Mobile Services at Wirecard: "Our ConnectedPOS platform enables us to quickly and easily implement acceptance for Alipay payments in eurotrade's central till system. The company is an important strategic partner for Wirecard because POS developments are only in their infancy in Europe. However, Alipay is a prime example of how quickly such solutions can become established on the market."

Rita Liu, Head of Europe at Alipay, adds: "It means a great added value for our customers that they can pay with their domestic payment method Alipay, now. Munich and the surrounding area is one of the most popular destinations of Chinese tourists. Through our marketing platform 'Global Lifestyle Platform' we will be able to provide useful information including offers, ratings and reviews to our Chinese users even before they arrive in Munich. We are sure that the new Alipay offerings of payment and marketing at all stores of Munich Airport, will be gratefully accepted by them."

Here is how Alipay Barcode Payment works in retail: A customer wishing to make a contactless payment via their Alipay App simply shows the retailer the barcode on their smartphone screen. The retailer then scans this barcode with their scanner and immediately launches the payment process. Behind the scenes, Wirecard initiates the payment. The customer confirms the purchase by entering their password and subsequently also receives a paper payment receipt. As the acquiring bank, Wirecard bundles all transactions for the respective retailer and processes these together via the collecting model.

Wirecard has been offering the innovative POS payment concept at retailers across Europe through the Alipay App since December 2015. For more information on Wirecard's Alipay solutions, please visit: https://www.wirecard.com/alipay/

About Wirecard: 

Wirecard AG is a global technology group that supports companies in accepting electronic payments from all sales channels. As a leading independent supplier, the Wirecard Group offers outsourcing and white label solutions for electronic payments. A global platform bundles international payment acceptances and methods with supplementary fraud prevention solutions. With regard to issuing own payment instruments in the form of cards or mobile payment solutions, the Wirecard Group provides companies with an end-to-end infrastructure, including the requisite licences for card and account products. Wirecard AG is listed on the Frankfurt Securities Exchange (TecDAX, ISIN DE0007472060, WDI). For further information about Wirecard, please visit http://www.wirecard.com or follow us on Twitter @wirecard.

About Munich Airport (munich-airport.de/en): 

With traffic of around 41 million passengers in the last year, Munich Airport is Germany's second largest airport and ranks seventh in Europe. Travellers from around the world value the high quality service during their time at Munich Airport. In 2015, it was the first airport in Europe to be awarded the coveted title of "5 Star Airport" by the renowned London Skytrax Institute. This logo that recognises exceptional performance in the categories of service, comfort and atmosphere has so far only been awarded to four Asian airports. In Skytrax's annual passenger survey, Munich Airport also regularly features on the list of top airports in the world. In 2016, Munich was able to cement its leading position as "Best Airport in Europe" as well as reaching an impressive third in the global ranking. The extensive range of shops and restaurants also make an important contribution to the success of Munich Airport. An extensive range of products is available to visitors and passengers at the airport, including beauty, fashion, jewellery, toys, lifestyle and food. Choice is equally broad in culinary terms, from Bavarian delicacies in the world's only airport brewery to surf and turf, Asian cuisine and Italian delights.

About Flughafen München GmbH's subsidiary eurotrade: 

eurotrade Flughafen München Handels GmbH was founded in 1973 and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Flughafen München GmbH (FMG). With around 1,200 employees, eurotrade operates approximately 70% of all retail units at Munich Airport, which equates to 13,586m², as well as one duty free shop at Friedrichshafen. eurotrade sets itself apart through exceptional retail expertise in four areas, with 21 duty free shops, 21 fashion stores, 16 press, travel and souvenir retailers including household products, and 11 watch and jewellery specialists. In proprietary and franchise concepts, eurotrade offers passengers high-quality and regional products from both national and international brands, with individual shop concepts that truly shape the experience and world of shopping at Munich Airport.

About Alipay: 

Launched in 2004, Alipay is the world's leading third-party payment platform. It currently has over 450 million active registered users and more than 200 financial institution partners. During the 2015 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, China's equivalent of Cyber Monday, Alipay processed RMB 91.3 billion worth of transactions from Alibaba's marketplaces. In addition to online payment functions such as online shopping payments, money transfer, and utility bill payments, Alipay is expanding to offline payments both inside and outside of China. Over 600,000 brick-and-mortar merchants and over one million taxis now accept Alipay as a payment method across China. As of December 2015, Alipay was accepted in more than 50,000 retail stores outside of China, and tax reimbursement via Alipay is supported in 24 countries and regions, including South Korea, Germany and France. More than half of the transactions processed by Alipay are conducted on mobile devices. Alipay has evolved from a digital wallet to a lifestyle enabler. Users can hail a taxi, book a hotel, or buy movie tickets directly from various modules within the app and purchase wealth management products such as Yu'e Bao.

Wirecard media contact:
Wirecard AG
Jana Tilz
Tel.:  +49(0)89-4424-1363
Email: jana.tilz@wirecard.com

eurotrade Flughafen München media contact:
eurotrade Flughafen München Handels-GmbH
Bernd Meyer
Tel.: +49-89-975-936-08
Email: bernd.meyer@munich-airport.de