HKMA to connect FPS with UnionPay for overseas payment this year

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority announces the Faster Payment System will be connected to UnionPay International within this year, supporting more than 100 million merchants worldwide.

Transactions will be instantly debited directly from users' Hong Kong bank accounts, though details such as transaction limits and exchange rates remain to be finalised.

Hong Kong currently has more than 22 million registered FPS users.

Beyond daily uses like splitting bills or making small-value payments, it can also be used when travelling abroad in the future.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority announced FPS will be linked with UnionPay International this year.

Customers will then be able to pay by scanning merchant QR codes through FPS-supported mobile banking and e-wallet applications.

The first phase is expected to cover local markets, Chinese Mainland, Macao,Malaysia and South Korea, with the long-term goal of supporting some 100 million merchants across more than 40 regions globally.

However, with intense competition and a wide variety of cross-border payment tools available, whether the public will switch to FPS remains to be seen.

This man says it might be difficult to compete against WeChat Pay and Alipayin the Mainland, but it might stand a chance in Southeast Asia.

This woman says credit card information can be easily compromised.

If an app requires facial recognition, personal details will be much harder to steal.

Regarding details like transaction limits and exchange rates, the HKMA stated they are still being finalised, but they will strive for the best possible exchange rates.