According to him, Kyrgyzstan is expanding beyond its domestic market: a unified QR payment system will now allow citizens to make payments in more than 62 countries and in various currencies.

Altymysh Turatbekov, Chairman of the Board of Interbank Processing Center CJSC, noted that a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the processing center and Alipay+.

Thanks to the integration, Elcard Mobile users can already pay for purchases using QR codes in Kazakhstan and Malaysia. The service will be launched in China on June 16, and by the end of July, the project will expand to dozens of countries.

According to Turatbekov, in the future, citizens of Kyrgyzstan will be able to use the system to pay for not only purchases but also utilities abroad. All transactions are fee-free.

He noted that Elcard had previously been integrated with Uzbekistan’s payment infrastructure, and work to expand the international partnership will continue.

Pan Yan, Alipay+’s Head of Strategic Partnerships in the CIS, emphasized that the service was developed in just nine months of intensive work, and the technical integration is now fully completed.

In the near future, foreign tourists and travelers will also be able to pay for goods and services in Kyrgyzstan through Alipay+ using QR codes and bank cards from their home countries.

Sanzhar Abdygaziev, a member of the National Bank’s Board, noted that QR is a unified payment infrastructure, and the launch of international integration will be an important factor in the development of tourism, the digital economy, and the financial sector in Kyrgyzstan.

According to the organizers, international QR payments will initially be available only to legal entities. The service is primarily aimed at travelers who need to quickly purchase essential goods abroad. Transaction limits are still under discussion, but, as speakers noted, the amounts will be quite large.

The National Bank emphasized that all systems comply with international security requirements. The payment infrastructure undergoes an annual international audit, and transaction security will fully comply with global standards.