Alipay in 80% of stores at Davos

Mobile payment giant Alipay has given access to its platform to merchants in Davos, where the World Economic Forum's annual meeting is being held.

Around 80 percent of stores in the village are accepting Alipay, news outlet Sina reported, quoting Roland Palmer, who heads Alipay's European business.

Chinese guests and media attending this year's Davos don't need to worry about how much cash they should carry, Palmer said, adding that more than 80 percent of the village's merchants accept Alipay, including hotels, popular Chinese restaurants, sporting goods stores, Swiss watch manufacturer Carl F. Bucherer, and luxury brand Bally.

"It will not only serve more Chinese participants, but it is also an opportunity to show the world China's digital technology business card – mobile payment,” he said.

The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum is ongoing at Swiss resort Davos, attracting thousand of global elites. The meeting will end on Jan 25.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma said earlier that Alipay can be dated back to 2004, when he attended the Davos meeting and was inspired to launch the payment tool.

At this year's Davos, Alibaba's open research platform, Luohan Academy, will release a report on digital technology and inclusive growth, Sina added.