You can now use Alipay to order taxis in 33 cities worldwide

Photograph: Dan Gold via Unsplash

According to Jiemian News, starting this week Alipay users are now able to hail taxis outside of Mainland China using a mini programme called Jingwai Dache (境外打车), which helps travellers use local e-hailing services in more than 30 cities and ten countries worldwide.

The first places on the list include the UK, the US, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam, covering 33 tourist hotspots in total. According to TechNode, Alipay is working on expanding this to 100 popular destinations in 20 countries by the end of the year.

To make this possible, Alipay teamed up with London-based mobility start-up Splyt Technologies, helping it connect to platforms like Grab in Thailand, Gett in the UK and Careem in the UAE.

Graphic: Tana

The mini programme is equipped with interactive maps in Chinese, a translator and 24/7 customer service in Mandarin. Payment can also be done in RMB via Alipay. To access the mini programme, open your Alipay and search jingwaidache (境外打车).

The service is seen as a solution to the difficulties Chinese tourists face when traveling overseas. According to an Alipay survey on taxi experiences abroad, 36 percent said they find it hard to communicate with local drivers about their location and destination, 34 percent worry about dishonest taxi drivers taking advantages of tourists and 15 percent said most taxis can't accept their credit card.

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