Alipay+, the international arm of China’s largest payments app, is running a web3 voucher proof of concept (PoC) using the Avalanche blockchain. The first stage involves users playing a branded mini-game to earn discounts on milk teas in Southeast Asia.
A second stage should make the PoC available to other merchants and the full reach of Alipay+ in Southeast Asia – a user base of more than 100 million.
The trial is part of Alipay+ D-store, an omnichannel solution for the food and beverage sector that allows brands to connect with clients both in-store and online. In addition to processing payment transactions (unrelated to web3), D-store also supports promotions, which is where the web3 PoC can add value. Several big brands, including Burger King and Nando’s, use the D-store solution.
One of Avalanche’s benefits for enterprises is the ability to create Subnets, which are custom Ethereum compatible chains with enhanced privacy. They often replace the need for crypto gas payments as well.
For a solution like Alipay+ with numerous food and beverage clients, web3 vouchers can be used to run promotions where one brand offers vouchers to customers of a different brand.
Meanwhile, Avalanche is one of a handful of blockchains that have successfully positioned themselves for enterprise and institutional usage. In the past few months Avalanche Subnets were used for trials run by Citi (fund tokenization and FX), JP Morgan and asset manager Apollo.
