Visa secures Chinese regulator approval and expands AI commerce partnership with Tencent
Visa receives clearance from the People’s Bank of China to launch a domestic bank card clearing service, while deepening its partnership with Tencent to broaden cross‑border payments and AI‑driven shopping tools in China. The joint effort will let travelers use Weixin Pay and Visa networks at participating merchants and introduce AI agents that assist shoppers in finding and buying items. The approvals also cover Citi, enabling both firms to grow their Chinese operations.
Key facts
- Visa and Tencent have collaborated since at least 2019 on international Visa cardholder payments via WeChat Pay.
- The new payment solutions target travelers using both Weixin Pay and Visa networks at participating merchants.
- AI‑driven agentic commerce aims to streamline product discovery and purchase for Chinese consumers.
- Regulatory green lights for Visa and Citi were granted earlier this month by Chinese authorities.
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Why it matters
The moves could boost foreign payment traffic and AI commerce in China’s large market.
What changed
First published from CNBC