Ant International’s Alipay+ has connected with the Philippines’ national QR payment system, allowing international visitors to pay merchants through supported overseas e-wallets and banking apps.
The integration with QR Ph means participating merchants can accept payments from Alipay+ partner users through their existing QR codes without installing a separate acceptance system, Philippine Payments Management Inc. (PPMI) and Ant International said.
An eligible traveler can scan a merchant’s QR Ph code using a supported Alipay+ partner wallet or banking app, with the transaction processed through the national QR infrastructure used by Philippine banks and e-money issuers.
The arrangement expands QR Ph beyond domestic interoperable payments into inbound cross-border transactions and could give smaller merchants access to foreign customers without requiring additional payment hardware or QR codes.
PPMI General Manager Carmelita Araneta said the connection extends QR Ph interoperability beyond the domestic market, while Alipay+ Global Growth Center General Manager Danny Chung said travelers would be able to continue using payment apps familiar to them.
The integration comes as digital payments account for a growing proportion of Philippine retail transactions.
Digital payments represented 64.69% of retail payment volume in 2025, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. QR Ph transactions increased more than thirteenfold during the year.
QR Ph operates under the Philippines’ National Retail Payment System and provides a common QR framework for participating banks and e-money issuers.
Alipay+ has been expanding connections with national QR infrastructure in other markets. Ant International says its network now connects more than 2 billion consumer accounts, more than 50 mobile payment providers and over 10 national payment switches.
The Philippine deal reflects a broader shift in cross-border payments toward connecting domestic instant-payment and QR networks rather than requiring merchants to integrate individual foreign wallets.
For smaller businesses, that model can lower the technical barriers to accepting overseas digital payments because existing QR infrastructure can serve both domestic and international customers.
It could also provide an alternative payment route for travelers who might otherwise rely on international card networks, although the economics of the two models cannot be compared from the announcement.
PPMI and Ant International did not disclose transaction fees, foreign-exchange charges, settlement arrangements or a timetable for expanding merchant coverage.
