Singtel rolls out QR code cross-border mobile payment in Thailand

They eye to expand the service in India, the Philippines, and Indonesia.

Singtel launched VIA which is a QR code-based cross-border mobile payment, an announcement revealed.

VIA will roll out through Singtel’s Thailand arm AIS and digital bank Kasikornbank.

Singtel said that it progressively expand the service to include other regional associates Airtel in India, Globe in the Philippines, Telkomsel in Indonesia. The group will also work with non-telcos including China’s Ping An eWallet, owned by Ping An Insurance Group.

"The VIA alliance is aimed at unifying Asia’s fragmented payments scene by connecting different mobile wallet systems across the region,” Singtel International Group CEO Arthur Lang said. “As more people travel around the region, we want them to be able to enjoy the ease and familiarity of using their local mobile wallets abroad.”

As of current, the mobile payment can be done through mobile wallets Singtel Dash, AIS GLOBAL Pay and Rabbit Line Pay, across both Singapore and Thailand. These can be used at all merchants displaying the VIA brand and over 1.6 million Kasikornbank merchants displaying the Thai QR code.

“We see a tremendous opportunity to drive the adoption of mobile payments which supports ASEAN’s push towards financial inclusion and vision of a single digital market,” Lang added.

The VIA service is accessible to more than 42 million LINE chat users in Thailand.