China’s Internet technology giant Tencent and American multinational payment company Visa have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore broader collaboration on payments and commerce across Tencent’s ecosystem.
In a statement on Thursday, Tencent said the MoU sets out a framework covering cross-border payments, agentic commerce, enterprise AI, and support for global business expansion. Tencent’s payment solutions and digital platforms would cooperate with Visa’s global network and cross-border money movement services.
The partnership builds on an existing partnership that serves international visitors to China. They aim to make cross-border payments easier for inbound and outbound travellers, using Tencent’s cross-border payment platform, TenPay Global, and Visa Pay.
For travellers to and from China, they plan to develop solutions for cross-border payments at participating merchants on the Weixin Pay and Visa networks. They also plan to deepen remittance collaboration through Visa Direct, in order to facilitate overseas senders to transfer funds into the Weixin Pay ecosystem.
The companies will explore how AI and agentic capabilities can support more seamless and secure digital commerce, while maintaining trust, security, and consumer control.
Tencent’s international payments platform, Midas, and Visa have worked together for years on gaming. The partnership now extends to Tencent’s overseas AI businesses. The companies have worked on joint marketing, global payments and money movement, and risk management. They plan to optimize AI payment experiences and explore agentic payment opportunities.
Dowson Tong, senior executive vice president of Tencent and CEO of its Cloud and Smart Industries Group, said the partnership supports better service for users and businesses across Tencent’s ecosystem. He said Tencent Cloud’s AI and agent capabilities could complement Visa’s network and expertise.
Forest Lin, corporate vice president of Tencent and head of Tencent Financial Technology, said the two would deepen cross-border payment connectivity as two-way travel and commerce between China and the rest of the world grow.
Elaine Chang, group general manager for Greater China at Visa, said the partnership would can new AI-powered experiences to Visa’s global network.
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