The Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) Alipay have entered into an agreement expected to facilitate the delivery of payment solutions between Australian and Chinese consumers and retailers.

Australians will have a conducive environment while doing business with Alibaba, China’s large e-commerce platform. This is one of the biggest milestones for the payment service given that 19,000 Chinese tourists who spend close to $8,000 weekly on each visit to Australia. The agreement is under the wings of Ant Financial Services Group, China’s most prominent financial technology company.

Expressing the company’s desire to have Alipay users enjoy every level of convenience, head of Alipay International and senior vice president of Ant Financial Services Group, Douglas Feagin asserted, “Australia is an attractive destination for Chinese travelers and Chinese students studying overseas.”

The Commonwealth Bank’s institutional banking and markets’ group executive, Kelly Bayer Rosmarin adds that the institution has every reason to celebrate being the first Australian bank to collaborate with Alipay

There is much more behind the payment platform

Apart from the Chinese tourists, Chinese students studying overseas will also be able to use the Albert payment terminal without necessarily having to disburse any form of currency. Alipay is already used by over 450 million people on a daily basis. It accommodates more than 380 million payments every day. Thus the new partnership is a clear indication that the payment system is likely to go beyond China.

Faithful to the point, China recently displaced the U.S from its dominance of being the world’s largest market for mobile payments. China made a record with its transaction volume of $235 billion, and it is expected to process $6.3 trillion by 2020.

Competition of mobile wallets by tech companies

Many tech companies have unveiled mobile wallets, the most distinguished being Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Android Pay. Apparently, contactless payment solutions have been well received in Australia, which happens to be Alibaba’s primary market.  The country is also among the first to introduce cashless payment methods. Meanwhile, Alibaba has registered its intent to open a local office in Melbourne.