Shopee and JCB International have entered into a regional partnership to provide online merchants and shoppers with enhanced payment options for the Southeast Asian market.
The partnership rolls out in July in Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, followed by Singapore and the Philippines in the following months.
JCB will offer year-round and seasonal discounts and an additional safe and secure payment method for shoppers. Shopee will also promote participating stores that support JCB.
“As consumer shopping habits shift to online and businesses digitalise their activities, we want to be able to further cater to these evolving needs,” said Yoshiki Kaneko, president and COO of JCB. “Over the past 10 years, Southeast Asia has been a growth market for JCB and we’re confident that together with Shopee, we can provide high-quality payments services for businesses and consumers, and continue to grow together with the region.”
Terence Pang, COO of Shopee, said shoppers will benefit from having another secure payment method and enjoy additional promotions.
“This is even more crucial in this new normal as commerce is increasingly done online and we need to be able to support diverse habits and preferences,” said Pang.
Citing data from App Annie, Shopee said it emerged emerged as the top in Southeast Asia and Taiwan in the shopping category in terms of average monthly active users and downloads, and also the total time spent in-app on Android.
With more Southeast Asian consumers going online through their mobile, Shopee is also focused on driving digital payments in the region. In 2019, Shopee launched ShopeePay, its own integrated mobile wallet.
JCB, the only international payment brand born in Japan, started its overseas expansion in 1981 by building acceptance of travel destinations for Japanese card members. Since the early 2000s, JCB has focused on expanding its international issuing business to Asian markets.
