With cross-border traveling on the rise so far in the current summer travel season, Chinese financial institutions are advancing payment connectivity to enhance the seamless and user-friendly spending experience for global travelers.
Gilbert, a traveler from Rwanda, has already enjoyed the convenience of seamless payment services when taking a taxi in Shanghai.
"I got really surprised because back in days, we were actually used to use cash as foreigners just traveling in Shanghai. But now it's very convenient because you can use your back-home country's bank card, like a visa card, whatever, and then you just swipe and that's all. Life is easy," he said.
The "tap-to-ride" payment system, which enables foreign travelers to make payments by tapping their bank cards onto the cellphone of the payee without the need for currency exchange or application installation, has greatly enhanced payment convenience for them in China.
"We have noticed that many foreign travelers prefer using their international cards for tap payments. Consequently, we have transformed our drivers' cellphones into kind of 'POS machines' capable of accepting international card payments. This enables foreign travelers to easily settle their taxi fares by simply swiping their cards, enhancing the convenience of their taxi journeys," said Xie Hua, general manager of the credit card department at the Bank of Communications Shanghai Branch.
Apart from the convenience in taxi rides, foreign travelers can swiftly pass through the gates of Shanghai's subway stations by using mainstream international chip cards for tap-and-go payments.
"For subway travel, we have introduced the 'flash pay' function for bank cards and the digital yuan's hard wallet for 'tap-to-pay' at gate passages. These efforts are focused on addressing inconvenience in travel by both domestic and international travelers, making it easier for them to make payment," Xie said.
In addition to traditional financial institutions, Tencent's WeChat Pay provides one-stop services for foreign travelers visiting China during the summer travel season, specifically at key arrival hubs such as the Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport in south China's Guangdong Province.
Data show that in June and July this year, the number and value of transactions made in China by foreigners using the WeChat Pay system linked to international bank cards nearly tripled compared to the same period last year.
Chinese financial institutions enhance cross-border payment connectivity for global travelers
Chinese financial institutions enhance cross-border payment connectivity for global travelers
Chinese financial institutions enhance cross-border payment connectivity for global travelers
The recently signed memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the United States and Iran has sparked major concern among Israeli officials, who fear that Israel's interests are being abandoned by its most crucial ally, according to analysts.
The development comes as Israel braces for a pivotal election later this year, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu potentially facing severe political fallout from the agreement.
"Israel views the MoU signed with Iran as a complete capitulation where the Americans were desperate to reach a deal because they clearly failed abysmally to plan for the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz. So they feel that all of Israel's interests have been abandoned," said Dan Perry, an American world affairs and political analyst.
Following the signing of the MoU, Iran and the United States held the first round of high-stakes indirect talks, mediated by Pakistan and Qatar, at the Swiss mountain resort of Buergenstock on Sunday.
On Monday, mediators announced encouraging outcomes from the talks, including a 60-day roadmap toward a final deal, and mechanisms to ensure the security of commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, a close ally of Iran in Lebanon.
However, there have been concerns that Israel may jeopardize the negotiations.
"No doubt that the Americans, some of the Americans, definitely some of the Americans that are negotiating, like the Vice President JD Vance, think that Israel can put some obstacles and jeopardize the negotiations," said Yaki Dayan, former Israeli consul in Los Angeles.
With Israeli elections looming later this year, Netanyahu's core strategy to get re-elected was to portray the very good relations he holds with U.S. President Donald Trump. However, the MoU and the ensuing negotiations between the U.S. and Iran may dramatically affect the election results.
"Unless something dramatically changes, this is devastating for Netanyahu, not only because he pursued a strategy that has failed - the Iranian regime still stands, the nuclear program still exists, Hamas and Hezbollah are still fighting against Israel, but also because he was long perceived as Mr. America, with his incredible eloquence in American English. He could run circles around any American president to get America to do Israel's bidding," said Perry.
Perry added that instead of maintaining that influence, Netanyahu has brought Israel to an unbelievably low point in its relationship with the United States.
Although Netanyahu did practically everything to persuade the U.S. to withdraw from the previous Iran nuclear deal signed more than a decade ago under President Barack Obama, analysts doubt that he can repeat it again this time because Israel and its prime minister rely entirely on just one side of the American political spectrum.
"When you look at alternatives now, you don't have because Israel has lost the Democratic side as well. So you don't have an alternative in the American politics," said Dayan.
Israel feels its interests "abandoned" in US-Iran deal: analysts
