Global: China and Indonesia Launch Pilot for Cross-Border QR Payment Linkage

China and Indonesia have officially commenced a pilot program to enable seamless cross-border QR code payments, marking a significant milestone in regional payment integration.

The initiative, currently in its sandbox testing phase, allows selected users from mainland China to make QR payments in Indonesia using the UnionPay and Alipay apps at more than 40 million merchants connected to Indonesia’s QRIS unified QR code system.

At the same time, participating merchants on the UnionPay and Alipay networks in China can now accept QR payments from 22 leading Indonesian mobile payment apps.

To ensure efficiency and convenience, transactions are settled directly in local currencies, reducing conversion frictions for consumers while enabling merchants in both countries to expand their customer base.

The pilot is being conducted under the oversight of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) and Bank Indonesia (BI), with participation currently limited to whitelisted users and merchants. However, both central banks have indicated that the linkage is expected to be fully rolled out by the end of 2025.

The initiative is part of broader regional efforts to strengthen cross-border payment connectivity in Asia, with the goal of enhancing trade, travel, and tourism flows between participating countries.