Currently, customers in Hong Kong can pay for their Western Union money transfer transactions online using any credit card issued in Hong Kong. The collaboration between HKT Payment and Western Union will provide an additional option to customers to pay via their Tap & Go mobile wallet for their money transfers on Westernunion.com and the Western Union mobile app, for seamless payout in cash at more than 525,000 Western Union Agent locations in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, or into billions of bank accounts and other wallets, where applicable.

“At Western Union, we are pulling out all the stops to provide customers with convenient channels to send money to their loved ones. If a customer wants to send money via a retail location – we make it possible. If a customer wants to send money online – we make that possible too. We are committed to our customers and realize their needs are evolving, and we are evolving with them,” said Molly Shea, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Global Money Transfer, Asia Pacific, Western Union.

“We are delighted to be able to extend our service offerings to customers in Hong Kong and provide them with multiple options to choose from, to pay for their transactions online and send money to their families back home. We are very pleased that our collaboration with Tap & Go will help deliver on our shared commitment to making the lives of customers easier,” added Shea.

“To better service our customers and to meet the increasing demand for various uses of mobile wallet in Hong Kong, we are delighted to collaborate with Western Union and extend our service offering for customers to send money to their families and friends located in countries around the world. Sending money overseas in different currencies can be made easily with the Tap & Go mobile wallet. The service will be welcome by all residents in Hong Kong. Together with other payment and instant peer-to-peer transfer functions, Tap & Go mobile wallet brings ultimate convenience when it comes to paying and managing household expenses,” said Monita Leung, Head of HKT Financial Services Limited.

According to the Nielsen Media Index 2017 Year End Report2, smartphone penetration in Hong Kong rose five percentage points from the previous year to 96%3, and 97% of all Internet users in Hong Kong had used a smartphone to access the Internet, highlighting the importance of the mobile channel.