China is reportedly negotiating with Visa, Mastercard and other global card issuers, seeking to reduce the fees they charge local merchants on foreign card transactions.
The Payment & Clearing Association of China has proposed that the card issuers reduce their fees from the current range of between 2% and 3% to 1.5%, Bloomberg reported Friday (June 21), citing unnamed sources.
Mastercard told Bloomberg that it has received such a proposal and that it is working with payment industry partners to lower costs, according to the report.
The association’s proposal is part of China’s efforts to encourage merchants to accept foreign cards, the report said. Currently, most merchants are reluctant to do so because of the processing fees.
Mastercard said in June 2023 that it teamed up with Alipay to offer a new payment option for international visitors to China, allowing them to go cashless while traveling around China’s mainland.
The Alipay-Mastercard partnership allows overseas card transactions completed on the Alipay digital wallet to be processed through Mastercard’s omnichannel payments platform. This means that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) can easily accept payments from anywhere in the world.
“The new service offered by Alipay and Mastercard will not only enable a better experience for international travelers when visiting China but will also unlock more business opportunities for merchants on the Alipay open platform as global travel is set for rapid growth,” Venetia Lee, general manager of Ant Group Greater China International Business, said in a press release announcing that partnership.
Also in June 2023, Tencent said that it would allow Visa credit cards to be linked to its WeChat app, enabling foreign tourists visiting China to pay with the WeChat app.
It was reported at the time that linking international credit cards to the WeChat app would solve the challenge foreign visitors have faced when trying to pay for goods and services in China.
Many shops and restaurants in the country accept only mobile payments, and only some businesses were allowed to process foreign-issued credit cards.
Prior to this agreement, foreign visitors who wanted to use Tencent’s mobile payments network had to set up a Chinese bank account.
We get a lot of press releases here at PYMNTS. We consider all of them, and some are more newsworthy than others. But this one really got our attention. This past week, Diebold Nixdorf made headlines with its announcement of successfully installing two new automated teller machines (ATMs) at the U.S. National Science Foundation’s McMurdo Station in Antarctica. This achievement marks a significant milestone in banking accessibility, to be sure. We would like to meet the crew that installed them. We’d also like to know why they needed two. Was there a line at the first one? More to come on that.
According to Diebold, McMurdo Station is Antarctica’s largest research and logistics hub, supporting a fluctuating population that ranges from fewer than 200 residents during the winter months to up to 1,100 individuals during the summer (October through February). The presence of these ATMs is crucial, it says, as the next closest banking facilities are thousands of miles away, making them the only ATMs on the entire continent. How’s that for a value proposition?
The DN Series ATMs are designed for always-on availability. And why do they need two? One ATM is actively in use, while the second serves as a backup for spare parts, ensuring uninterrupted service in this isolated area. These machines are connected to the DN AllConnect Data Engine, which leverages Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor their performance. A dedicated team continuously aggregates and analyzes technical data to identify potential issues, enabling remote diagnostics and repairs. The ATM can be maintained by trained staff at NSF McMurdo Station, or the Diebold Nixdorf service team can remotely guide them through the repair process.
Anyway, it got us thinking. Are there other surprising ATMs in extreme locations? Well, of course, there are. Here’s a sampling of what we found.
At an altitude of about 5,364 meters (17,600 feet), the Mount Everest Base Camp in Nepal is another unexpected place to find an ATM. Although it’s not a permanent fixture and is often set up seasonally, it caters to climbers and trekkers who need cash for local transactions. This temporary ATM service underscores the adaptability of banking services in extreme environments.
In some parts of the Amazon rainforest, particularly in Brazil and Peru, ATMs can be found in small villages and towns. These machines are vital for local communities, providing access to cash in areas where digital payment options might be limited. The presence of ATMs here demonstrates how banking services can reach even the most remote communities.
Located in the Tibet Autonomous Region, Nagqu is home to one of the highest ATMs in the world. This region is very remote, with limited infrastructure, making the presence of an ATM a notable example of banking accessibility in extreme environments.
In the Thousand Islands (Kepulauan Seribu) off the coast of Jakarta, Indonesia, there’s a floating ATM. This unique ATM serves the local community and tourists on the islands, demonstrating how banking services can adapt to isolated marine environments.
Longyearbyen, the administrative center of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway, boasts the most northerly ATM. This location is one of the most remote inhabited places on Earth, with limited access to mainland Norway, making the ATM a vital service for residents and visitors.
On a more serious note, the installation of ATMs in places like Antarctica and other remote locations highlights the evolving nature of banking technology. With advancements in IoT, AI and remote diagnostics, it’s becoming increasingly feasible to provide banking services in areas previously considered inaccessible. As we look to the future, it will be interesting to see where else ATMs might appear. Whether it’s on a remote island, at the top of a mountain or even in space, the ability to access cash is becoming more universal than ever. And who knows? Maybe one day, we’ll see an ATM on Mars, serving the first interplanetary travelers.
For now, the presence of ATMs in unexpected places reminds us that banking is not just about transactions; it’s about connecting people and communities across the globe, no matter how remote they might be.
