Douyin set to offer another digital payment option

Douyin debuted its payment service Douyin Pay on Tuesday, which could shake the dominatance of Alibaba and Tencent in the market segment. 

Douyin, which has more than 600 million daily active users, plans to promote Douyin Pay during the Spring Festival next month. During the festival, Chinese people often give red packets as gifts, representing good luck for the new year.

"The release of Douyin Pay (Douyin Zhifu) will supplement existing major payment options and enhance user experiences on Douyin,” company officials said in a statement.

Currently, Internet giants Alibaba and Tencent dominate the market with AliPay and WeChat Pay, facilitating more than 80 percent of domestic online transactions.

ByteDance is another industry giant for short videos, social media and artificial intelligence algorithms, which may change the payment industry landscape in China, analysts said.

Douyin will partner with China Central Television during Spring Festival broadcasts. 

Several years ago, Tencent promoted WeChat Pay during Spring Festival. With features like red packets, WeChat Pay has eaten away at Alipay's market share.

During the Spring Festival, users of Toutiao, Douyin and other ByteDance apps can take part in promotions in which they receive money from the company and then transfer it to their linked bank accounts during red-packet giveaways, Douyin officials said.

Ti Gong