TerraPay has partnered with Ant International’s Alipay+ to enable users of selected African digital wallets to make cross-border payments at more than 150 million merchants worldwide.
The partnership connects TerraPay’s Xend wallet interoperability network with the Alipay+ ecosystem, allowing digital wallet providers connected to Xend to extend their customers’ payment capabilities beyond their home markets.
The initial rollout will cover 15 digital wallets across Africa, giving their users access to Alipay+’s merchant network across 220 destination markets and more than 150 million merchants.
The integration is aimed at addressing a growing challenge in Africa’s digital payments market: while mobile wallets have become widely used for domestic transactions, their usefulness often drops when users travel or need to make payments outside their home countries.
Under the new arrangement, eligible users will be able to use their existing local digital wallets to pay participating merchants by scanning QR codes, without necessarily needing to switch to another payment application or rely on cash.
For African wallet providers, the integration also provides a way to extend the reach of their existing products without having to build individual connections to international merchant networks.
Moving African wallets beyond local payments
TerraPay has traditionally focused on cross-border money movement and account-to-account payments. Its Xend network is designed to connect digital wallets across markets and allow money to move between different wallet ecosystems.
The Alipay+ partnership expands that proposition into international merchant payments.
Instead of a wallet primarily serving as a tool for receiving or sending money within a domestic market, users can potentially use the same wallet when shopping abroad.
“The home wallet on your phone, that is from Kenya or Colombia or any country, should work the same way in Singapore or China or anywhere in the world, as easily as it does at home,” said Ambar Sur, founder and CEO of TerraPay.
The company said the partnership is particularly relevant for markets across Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, where digital wallet adoption has grown significantly but international acceptance remains fragmented.
Alipay+ currently connects more than 50 international payment partners to its global merchant network and integrates with more than 10 national payment systems.
A push for payment interoperability
The partnership reflects a broader shift in digital payments towards interoperability, as payment companies seek to connect previously separate wallets, banks and payment networks.
For consumers, interoperability can reduce the need to maintain multiple payment accounts or rely on unfamiliar payment methods when travelling.
For fintechs and wallet providers, it can provide access to international commerce without requiring them to independently establish relationships with merchants and payment networks in every market.
TerraPay said its integration with Alipay+ will allow participating African wallets to offer international payment capabilities through a single connection to the Xend network.
This could also help wallet providers retain customers who might otherwise turn to international cards, alternative wallets or cash when making payments outside their home markets.
Africa’s digital payment opportunity
Africa has become one of the world’s most active markets for mobile money and digital wallets, but cross-border payments remain relatively fragmented.
The challenge is particularly significant as more Africans travel, trade, work and conduct business across borders.
A consumer travelling from Kenya to China, for example, may have access to a mobile wallet that works seamlessly at home but offers limited utility once they leave the country. Connecting domestic wallets to global merchant networks could help close that gap.
For TerraPay, the partnership is therefore part of a broader effort to build payment infrastructure that allows money and payment credentials to move more easily between different financial ecosystems.
For Alipay+, the integration expands the reach of its merchant network by connecting more users from emerging markets to merchants around the world.
As African digital wallets continue to evolve from domestic payment tools into broader financial platforms, the ability to transact internationally could become an increasingly important part of their value proposition.
The TerraPay and Alipay+ partnership represents another step towards that connected payments ecosystem, where users can rely on their existing wallets not only to move money across borders but also to pay directly for goods and services wherever they are.
Techmoni Africa tracks the Fintech, Web3, and Forex stories defining Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana. Have a story that deserves attention? Reach our editorial team at info@techmoniafrica.com
