Alibaba to allow payment through Tencent's WeChat Pay for the first time on e-commerce apps

Chinese tech giant Alibaba on Wednesday said that its core Taobao and Tmall e-commerce platforms will now allow payment through Tencent's WeChat app for the first time.

Previously, Alibaba's Chinese e-commerce sites only accepted limited payment options and pushed WeChat Pay rival Alipay as one of the main ways to pay. Alipay is run by Ant Group, an affiliate of Alibaba that was also founded by Jack Ma.

"We have always been open to collaborations, and have actively explored interoperability and partnerships with our peers," an Alibaba spokesperson told CNBC. "We are constantly working to enhance user experience by making shopping more convenient, enjoyable, and efficient."

Taobao and Tmall will likely begin accepting payments through WeChat Pay this month, a source familiar with the matter who was not authorized to disclose the details publicly, told CNBC.

The historic move comes as Alibaba looks to reignite growth in its China e-commerce business, which has been under pressure from a sluggish Chinese consumer and from competitors like JD.com amd Temu-owner PDD.

Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu has previously said that the Taobao and Tmall business should return to growth toward the latter half of the firm's fiscal year 2025.

WeChat has more than 1.3 billion users globally, the majority of whom is located in China. WeChat Pay is one of the biggest mobile payments apps in the country.

By allowing users to transact through WeChat Pay on Taobao and Tmall, Alibaba could therefore increase its market share in less developed parts of China, the source said.

The company's biggest rival JD.com has also allowed WeChat Pay to be used on its platform for a long time.

Another theme in the background is the regulatory scrutiny that Beijing has put on