US payment company Mastercard on Wednesday announced a plan to conduct a pilot program involving its quick response (QR) code payment services in Hong Kong next year, to further its business presence in the Asian markets.

Mastercard's QR payment solution, called Masterpass QR, was launched in 2016. The service has already been introduced to India, a booming market and it is scheduled to enter Thailand and Indonesia by the end of this year, according to a statement of the company.

“We look forward to the adoption of the EMVCo global QR standards. In the meantime, we’ll continue to work with our customers and partners to make every device a secure way to pay and be paid,” Mastercard stated. 

Reuters Photo

Mastercard said it is now broadening its solutions to offer QR codes that can be scanned by either consumers or merchants under a common set of global specifications.

According to a Mastercard report, it has worked with EMVCo and other industry players to create a new global QR standard. The standard ensures consistency in QR codes both generated and captured on a consumer’s mobile phone, the company explained. 

The use of QR codes in certain markets complements the extensive investment in contactless payments to provide merchants of all sizes – from international chains to individual shop owners and street vendors – a fast, secure and inexpensive way to accept payments, MasterCard said.

The company’s consumer-presented solution will allow the merchant to scan a QR code from a smartphone and process the payment through the Mastercard network. It will leverage M/Chip technology to provide a secure way to pay based on EMV infrastructure, Mastercard explained.

(Written by CGTN's Han Jie)