International visitors to Beijing can ‘Tap & Go’ with Mastercard cards to pay for rides on Beijing urban rail transit

Supported by the PBC, the Beijing government, and the city’s urban rail transit system, Mastercard has become the first international payment brand in Chinese mainland to complete system integration and successfully launch the 'Tap & Go' feature for urban rail transit

Mastercard and Beijing’s urban rail transit system today announced that international visitors to Beijing will be able to make ‘Tap & Go’ payments at all Beijing urban rail transit stations using their overseas-issued Mastercard cards, starting today (9.13). With the launch of this initiative, the capital’s urban rail transit system will be the first in China to enable contactless fare payment via overseas-issued cards. Meanwhile, supported by the People's Bank of China (PBC), the Beijing government, and the city’s urban rail transit system, Mastercard has become the first international payment brand in Chinese mainland to complete system integration and launch the 'Tap & Go' feature for urban rail transit.

As the latest extension of Mastercard’s Pay Like a Local initiative, this ‘Tap & Go’ experience will make it easy for inbound travelers to Beijing to seamlessly pass through more than 10,000 gates across approximately 490 Beijing urban rail transit stations, without needing to find an ATM or buy a transport card. Notably, this new service features Mastercard’s sonic branding. When cardholders tap their cards on the turnstile, the iconic Mastercard tune will play to confirm that the transaction was completed successfully. Moreover, Beijing urban rail transit’s acceptance of overseas-issued Mastercard cards is just the beginning. Soon, local cardholders will be able to use their new ‘China Mastercard’ cards to pay their fares on Beijing urban rail transit too.

“Facilitating payments and building a diversified and intelligent urban payment ecosystem are among Mastercard’s core tasks. We are thrilled to be the first international payment brand to make the ‘Tap & Go’ urban rail transit experience possible for inbound visitors traveling across Beijing,” said Dennis Chang, executive vice president and division president, Greater China, Mastercard. “This breakthrough collaboration makes it so much easier for visitors to ride the Beijing urban rail transit as it eliminates many cumbersome steps, making inbound payments more convenient and seamless. Meanwhile, it also represents another meaningful practice of digital payments from Mastercard, which enables intelligent urban mobility and frees up the traffic congestion.”

In 2023, Mastercard launched its Pay Like a Local initiative to advance inclusive payments and build a card-based market in China. To facilitate inbound tourism and spur domestic consumption, Mastercard first partnered with WeChat and Alipay to link overseas-issued cards to these two digital wallets. Following this, the company has been continuously accelerating the expansion of its acceptance network, identifying key commercial areas and usage scenarios, such as hotels, public transportation and tourist attractions in hub cities and popular destinations. The goal of these moves is to add millions of Mastercard acceptance locations within three years.

Ongoing, rapid urbanization calls for sustainable and affordable solutions. Over the years, Mastercard has leveraged its solutions to make the sustainable choice the easiest and most accessible choice, and has effectively extended this approach to urban mobility. For example, Mastercard has helped institute contactless ticketing or open-loop ticketing systems for Transport for London and other cities, including New York City, Milan, Singapore, and Sydney, working with institutions to establish mobility transaction processing rules and ensure that validators across a country’s network are compatible with contactless cards and devices.

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