China's WeChat Alipay does both, but let India steal the first digital payment? Netizen: Impossible: India's four-way payment platform conviction

WeChat and Alipay are the two giants of digital payments in China, dominating the majority of payment scenarios and bringing great convenience to the lives of the Chinese people. However, while the Chinese people are enjoying the dividends of digital payments, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprising statement, claiming that "India leads the world in digital payments, accounting for nearly 40% of global digital transactions".

The comment immediately sparked a heated debate among Chinese netizens, with many expressing scepticism, arguing that India lags far behind China and questioning how India can lead in digital payments.

So, what exactly is India's digital payments strength and what are China's advantages in the digital payments space? Let's dive into the details below.

**Current status of digital payments in India**

Digital payments in India did not develop overnight, but have gone through a long and tortuous journey. At the current stage, digital payments in India have matured. At this stage, India's digital payment ecosystem has been relatively complete, covering a wide range of areas such as consumer payments, financial payments, personal payments, etc., covering both urban and rural users, providing strong support for India's economic and social development. The Government of India and the Central Bank have also formulated a series of digital payment policies to regulate the market order, protect consumer rights and interests, guard against risks and challenges, and promote innovation and development.

Even the British magazine The Economist has gone on record to say that India has a 46% share of global instant payments, leading the world with 895 million digital transactions in 2022.

**Analysis of the advantages of digital payments in China**

Looking at the current state of digital payments in India, it is true that India has achieved something. However, has India really surpassed China in the field of digital payments?

Not necessarily so. Many netizens criticised The Economist's calculations, questioning how 895 million transactions compare to China's WeChat Pay and Alipay.

In fact, China's digital payments still have many advantages in terms of market size, technological level, innovation and regulatory system, all of which show China's lead over India.

In terms of market size, China's digital payment transaction volume far exceeds that of India. According to relevant data, in 2020, China's digital payment transaction volume reached RMB 216.2 trillion, while India's is only RMB 2 trillion, a difference of nearly ten times.

At the technological level, China is more advanced and mature. China's digital payment platforms not only have strong technical teams and R&D capabilities, but also have established extensive partnerships with various industries to provide users with diversified and personalised payment services.

China's digital payment platforms continue to explore new technologies and applications, such as face recognition, voice recognition, blockchain, and cloud computing, to enhance the security and convenience of digital payments.

While India's digital payment platforms are also progressing and innovating, there are still technology gaps and many challenges in terms of infrastructure, data security, and user experience.

In terms of innovation capacity, China's digital payment innovations are more active and diverse. In addition to providing basic payment functions, China's digital payment platforms have developed a variety of related or unrelated functions, such as red packets, money transfers, financial management, social networking, entertainment and public welfare, providing users with a richer and more interactive payment experience.

China's digital payment platforms also continue to expand into new payment scenarios and areas, such as healthcare, education, travel and public affairs, providing users with more convenient and efficient payment solutions.

And while India's digital payment platforms are trying to innovate and expand, they still have limitations in terms of payment functionality, experience and scenarios, leaving a lot of room for growth and potential.

**Analysis of comments by Internet users**

Netizens have different views on PM Modi's comments and the comparison of digital payments between India and China. Based on web searches, here is an analysis of the comments made by netizens:

Some netizens simply said "no way", thinking that Prime Minister Modi's remarks were exaggerated and even self-deceptive. He did not take into account China's digital payment strengths and advantages, nor did he see India's payment challenges, but only boasted about his own achievements and image, ignoring the facts and truth.

These netizens believe that China leads the world in digital payments, surpassing India in terms of market size, technological level, innovation and regulatory system.

Proud of China's digital payments and sympathetic to India's, they hoped that PM Modi would face reality, stop making unrealistic statements and avoid unrealistic behaviour.

**Conclusion**

All in all, Prime Minister Modi's remarks have sparked heated discussions among Chinese netizens with varying opinions. However, we should look at the comparison between China and India's digital payments objectively and rationally, avoiding complacency or excessive modesty, and should not hastily dismiss or endorse them. We should analyse and assess the situation from multiple perspectives to arrive at a more comprehensive and accurate conclusion.

I believe that China and India have their own strengths and weaknesses in the field of digital payments, and each has its own development and innovation, contribution and value. We should learn from, support and co-operate with each other, respect and understand each other, and work together to promote the progress and development of digital payments and contribute to the well-being and happiness of mankind.