For many foreign visitors, the most difficult part about traveling in China initially is navigating the

unique payment system. Online payments are now the main way through which people pay for

everything, from groceries in a farmer's market to a car in the dealership. The main two providers of

online payments are WeChat and Alipay from Tencent and Alibaba respectively. The People's Bank of

China, or PBoC, is also joining the party with its digital currency pilot programs and is likely to take up

a substantial part of the market in the future. Huawei, a juggernaut in 5G equipment and consumer

electronics, has also rolled out its online payment platform, called Huawei Pay, for users of its devices.

There are three main ways to pay digitally at present. The easiest and most common is for the party to receive the money,

for example, a supermarket to scan the payment barcode available to all registered users of the apps mentioned above,

which in turn may be connected to your bank account. The transaction is instantaneous, and you can now pay with a mere

smart band or watch without needing an internet connection using an offline QR code.

The second method, used in less formal settings such as with street vendors or sending money to a friend, is by way of a

QR code. Unlike the first method, the payer needs to scan the code of the person you want to give the money to. This

requires an internet connection and is also available on multiple devices, from phones to smartwatches.

The final method, which is gaining popularity among young people, especially involves using biometric markers such as

facial or palm print recognition. This allows you to pay without any device on you and is especially handy when you just

want a bottle of water from a convenient store on a workout.

A cashless society seems inevitable in today's China. Even beggars are said to be using a QR code to receive money, and if a

burglar entered an average home today, they would most likely not find any physical money there because everything is digital.