Visa, a global payments technology company, announced on Thursday that it will work with Apple to enable cardholders in China to add their Visa cards to Apple Pay and make payments overseas in a wide range of scenarios — including at on and offline merchants and within mobile apps.

"As global digital payments continue to grow at a rapid pace, consumer demand for mobile, interoperable payment solutions has also risen steadily," Yin Xiaolong, Visa's president for the Chinese mainland, said.

"Upholding our long-term commitment to the China market and its cardholders, Visa has increased investment in data and payment security by launching tokenization services and taking the lead in applying them to cross-border payment scenarios," Yin said. "We are pleased to work with Apple and financial institutions to be among the first to bring Chinese cardholders a safer and more convenient mobile payment experience."

The first batch of issuing banks supporting Apple Pay linking for Visa cardholders in China includes Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of Communications, China Merchants Bank, China CITIC Bank, Ping An Bank, and Industrial Bank. Visa and Apple are working closely with additional banks, with more features to be rolled out in the future.

Mastercard said on Thursday that Mastercard-branded credit and debit cards issued in China will also soon support Apple Pay. Cardholders can check the Apple website, the Mastercard and Mastercard NetsUnion websites, as well as card issuing banks' websites and apps for information on availability and activation.

jiangxueqing@chinadaily.com.cn