The transformative impact of China's digital payment systems

A foreign guest tries to use the "Meet China" Inbound Tourism Digital Consumption Screen in Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai, east China, Sept. 27, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's advancements in mobile payment systems are difficult to ignore.

Remarkable growth is being reflected in the surging popularity among inbound visitors. This has contributed to significant spending and remains a powerful indicator of the system's endurance, growth and future promise. 

According to the People's Bank of China (PBOC), travelers who used active mobile payment in early 2025 exceeded 10 million.The surge in transactions highlights a growing international appeal for China's streamlined business policies. These measures, which extend beyond seasonal holiday offerings, are part of a broader vision to enhance the visitor experience. 

Underlying these developments are significant reforms and a strategy to transform travel facilities for payment convenience. Beijing has focused on its opening-up policy. Central to this vision is the transformative promise of digital payments. The country's mobile payment penetration rate has risen significantly, reaching 86%, with government efforts focusing on combining the comparative strengths of card transactions, digital payments, and cash to create a composite payment mechanism for international visitors. 

This comes as China makes significant strides in streamlining the digital yuan, a currency designed to facilitate cross-border payments through a broader set of transaction channels. The growing popularity of China's digital payments should be seen as an extension of this nationwide digital transformation: a dedicated digital yuan cross-border payment platform is now operational, connecting China to global solutions that enhance payment ease for international trade.

This massive appeal is also evident within China's borders. From vendors in rural areas to high-tech businesses in major metropolises, the simple act of scanning a QR code for a digital payment demonstrates a form of inclusive, transformational social reform. As Bian Yongzu, executive deputy editor-in-chief of Modernization of Management magazine, noted in a recent interview, "China has continued to improve its cross-border financial infrastructure, including the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS)."

The potential for expanding China's digital payment system is considerable. The establishment of dedicated payment service zones in dozens of airports serves as a model for innovative payment solutions. These zones offer a one-stop solution for inbound visitors, providing necessary facilitation, customized consultation, and troubleshooting support. This also serves as a gateway for eventual international expansion.

Central to building an enduring digital economy is the system's ability to integrate non-digital transactions, including cash, into a unified, long-term payment framework. To China's advantage, its mobile payment network spans critical travel entry points, extends from early-stage startups to large multinational operations, and fosters a sense of equity and inclusion among a vast number of users. Foreign economies keen on achieving breakthroughs in digital payments can extract vital lessons from China's rapid deployment of digital networks and its expansion of cost-effective payment solutions built upon that foundation.

The growing national and international traction for digital payments points to a broader truth about China's rapidly evolving society. There is an openness to varied and adaptable digital trade ecosystems. Digital payment systems enable the country's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to establish direct connections with international consumers, effectively integrating them into a global market projected to reach $5 trillion by 2033. SMEs can leverage reductions in operational costs, giving individual businesses the flexibility to scale their operations and gain substantial visibility in the global digital economy.

Beijing's strides in streamlining digital payments reflect the broader technological transformation underway across the country. China invested nearly $500 billion in research and development (R&D) last year and has prioritized major upgrades in technological and scientific self-reliance from 2026 to 2030.This strong policy support underlines the premium China places on robust innovation to prepare for the future. The development of new quality productive forces is also a stated priority, pointing to the vast potential for technological breakthroughs to increase their overall contribution to national growth.

These top-level understandings on technological innovation lend optimism for the growth and expansion of China's digital payment systems. Efforts are already underway to strengthen global payment services by increasing the coverage of point-of-sale (POS) payments in key cities. China's track record also makes it responsive to the sentiments of foreign visitors, their consumption needs and expectations, and what constitutes internationally standard convenience measures for tourists.

With digital currency payments facilitating domestic enterprises' access to the global digital economy, and capturing significant spending potential from the surge in inbound visitors, the outlook for future growth and expansion in this sector is substantial.

Hannan Hussain is co-founder and senior expert at Initiate Futures, an Islamabad-based policy think tank.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.