Zhang Yang

    nicolezyyy@163.com

    WORLD First, a fintech company based in the United Kingdom, has expanded its currency transfer business in China recently, helping Chinese e-commerce traders manage payments from overseas buyers, according to a press conference held by the company in Shenzhen on Thursday.

    “The overall value of e-commerce imports and exports in China is expected to reach 6.5 trillion yuan (US$1 trillion) this year, according to the commerce ministry,” said Andy Xu, the company’s vice president of sales in South China.

    Xu said the trading value of cross-border e-commerce in Guangdong was 16.7 billion yuan last year, the highest nationwide, and at least 70 percent of turnover was generated in Shenzhen.

    “The rapid development of the cross-border e-commerce has propelled the growth of Internet financial services such as online payments,” Xu said.

    Gu Xiaobei, an expert in cross-border e-commerce traffic, attended the conference as a guest speaker. He said there were 364 million people using mobile devices for online shopping in China last year, and the number is expected to approach 500 million by 2018.

    “Online payments made on mobile devices in China exceeded payments made on PCs for the first time last year,” Gu said, adding that cross-border e-commerce traders should pay close attention to customers’ increasing reliance on mobile devices for online transactions.

    Henry Chen, World First’s head of sales and partnerships in Asia, said the firm can help its clients open and manage bank accounts in foreign countries where their products will be sold and help them transfer the money back to their Chinese bank accounts. He said it is an easier and cheaper way for e-commerce traders to receive payments from overseas buyers.

    According to Chen, the company was awarded the 2016 Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade in April for its innovation in cross-border currency transfers and its role in facilitating international trade for small and medium-sized enterprises in the United Kingdom.

    Chen said the company was founded in 2004 and has partnered with some of the world’s leading banks such as Citibank and Barclays for currency transfers. The company has obtained currency exchange and transfer licenses in Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Australia and 48 states in the United States, which Chen said was an essential step to safeguard clients’ money.