UnionPay International (UPI) announced today its partnership with KASIKORNBANK (KBank), one of the largest commercial banks in Thailand, to enable the UnionPay QR code on K PLUS, KBank’s mobile banking app, which extends the app’s usage from within Thailand to UnionPay QR merchants worldwide. 

K PLUS is Thailand’s largest mobile banking app in terms of user base. The cooperation between the two parties will provide Thai residents with convenient cross-border mobile payment services and further drive the localization of UnionPay’s business in the country. 

In recent years, UPI has been improving the eco-system for mobile payment. More than 13 million merchants in 94 countries and regions outside the Chinese mainland now support the UnionPay QR or mobile QuickPass. More than 140 UnionPay-powered e-wallets have been launched in 30 countries and regions outside the Chinese mainland—13 of such wallets were implemented during the first half of 2022. A total of over 24 million UnionPay virtual cards have been issued, nearly half of which were delivered to cardholders in Southeast Asia. 

A third-party survey shows that since the start of the pandemic, the mobile payment industry has developed rapidly in Thailand, and the penetration rate of e-wallets is expected to reach over 60% within three years. To meet the needs of local residents, UnionPay has been actively introducing its related offerings to the market. Nearly 400,000 POS terminals in the country now accept the UnionPay QR code, while the mobile banking apps and wallets of several major banks support the issuance or enrollment of UnionPay cards. The cooperation between KBank and UPI will provide services for more than 18 million K PLUS users who can apply for a UnionPay virtual card online before making UnionPay QR payments at the accepting merchants. 

UnionPay cards are accepted almost everywhere in Thailand. Building on this, UPI has collaborated extensively with major banks and businesses in the country in terms of card issuing. Half of the ten largest Thai banks have issued UnionPay cards, and the total number of UnionPay cards issued in the country has exceeded 15 million.