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First Data, Alipay strike mobile payments deal

May 9, 2017

Hot on the heels of last week's announcement by ACI Worldwide, First Data has announced that it, too, is expanding its relationship with Alipay. According to a press release from First Data, the company has struck an agreement under which it will process Alipay mobile payments in the U.S.

First Data will implement Alipay at the point of sale for its 4 million U.S. business clients, beginning with those who use the Clover suite of solutions, according the company said.

Alipay transactions will be routed through Acculynk, a payment technology company recently acquired by First Data, for tokenization of the Alipay QR code for settlement.

"Our goal is to extend reliable payment services to the over 4 million Chinese consumers that visit North America every year," Souheil Badran, president of Alipay North America, said in a statement. "Extending our partnership with a premier partner like First Data provides the merchants with a seamless integration and access to consumers who want to continue paying with their lifestyle mobile app."

This new collaboration enhances the existing relationship between First Data and Alipay. In 2016, the companies piloted the implementation in select high-end and specialty retail locations in California and New York.