Ant Financial’s Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat Pay introduced a new initiative enabling tourists in China to use their mobile payments services without a linked Chinese bank account.

Chinese tech website Abacus first reported that Alipay, in collaboration with the Bank of Shanghai, had launched a new programme dubbed Tour Pass on Alipay, which lets tourists add funds to its payments app from an international credit or debit card.

Tencent then announced a similar move for WeChat Pay on its official website.

Previously, non-domestic tourists required a Chinese bank account to add funds to Alipay and WeChat Pay, which made it difficult for them to access mobile payment services.

Abacus noted the solution will be welcomed by international visitors to China, considering many merchants in the country no longer accept cash, as payment platforms Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat Pay continue to thrive.

Users can add cash to both platforms using a bank card from Visa, Mastercard, Discover Global Network, American Express and JCB.