WeChat Rolls Out In-Store Payments for Nine Retailers

Chinese internet company Tencent has ramped up efforts to bring mobile payments to the masses with the launch of a new feature that allows in-store mobile payments on the popular mobile messaging app WeChat.

According to a report by Pingwest.com, WeChat now has a new “shua ka” or “Small Payments” feature inside the app’s “Wallet” section. WeChat’s “Wallet” can be set up with a user’s bank account information.

When users press the icon and enter a password for WeChat Payments, a QR Code or a barcode is automatically generated. Retailers can scan the barcode to accept payments for in-store purchases.

To enhance security, the QR code or the barcode is updated every minute, adds the report.

WeChat’s in-store payments feature is first being launched for nine retailers across China: restaurant chain Dairy Queen, Guoda Pharmacies, department store chains Minsheng Baihuo and Tianhong, supermarket chains Lotus and One Plus One, convenience store chains Guoda 365 and Hao Lingju, and childcare chain Aiyingshi.

WeChat’s new feature is set to rival Alibaba’s Alipay Wallet, which also allows users to pay for in-store purchases by generating bar codes, QR codes and sound waves.

With the launch, TenCent taps into the growing number of active WeChat users, which has reached 438 million as of the second quarter of 2014.