Bahrain’s BENEFIT Teams Up with Ant International to Bring Alipay+ Cross‑Border QR Payments by 2026

Bahrain’s national payments switch BENEFIT has signed a deal with Ant International to link its national QR payment scheme with Alipay+, enabling over 15,000 merchants to accept global e‑wallets and paving the way for outbound digital payments by 2026.

Manama / Singapore — November 25, 2025

Bahrain is moving to plug its domestic payment rails into one of the world’s largest digital wallet networks.

BENEFIT, the country’s national e‑payments and fintech infrastructure provider, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ant International to connect Bahrain’s BENEFIT QR scheme to Alipay+, Ant’s global wallet gateway. The partners are targeting a 2026 launch for cross‑border QR code payments that work both for inbound visitors and, at a later stage, outbound Bahraini travellers. ^[1]

The announcement first appeared via Business Wire and has since been carried by outlets including Yahoo Finance, Morningstar, Tech in Asia and a range of regional and payments‑industry publications. ^[2]

Key facts at a glance

Parties involved: BENEFIT (Bahrain’s national payments and fintech company) and Ant International (the Ant Group‑affiliated global payments and techfin arm). ^[3]
What’s being built: A cross‑border QR payment link between Bahrain’s BENEFIT QR network and Ant’s Alipay+ wallet gateway. ^[4]
Go‑live timeline: Roll‑out planned during 2026, following the MoU signed in November 2025. ^[5]
Merchant reach: More than 15,000 merchants in Bahrain will be able to accept QR payments from Alipay+ partner wallets once live. ^[6]
Network scale: Alipay+ already links 1.8 billion+ user accounts, 40+ digital payment partners and around 150 million merchants in 100+ markets. ^[7]
Future phase: The partners will also explore outbound payments, allowing Bahrain‑issued digital wallets to be used at Alipay+‑enabled merchants overseas. ^[8]

What exactly has been announced?

According to the joint press material distributed through Business Wire and re‑published by Yahoo Finance, Morningstar and others, BENEFIT and Ant International have agreed to work on: ^[9]

Linking Bahrain’s national QR payment scheme to Alipay+
- BENEFIT operates the kingdom’s national QR infrastructure, tying together local banks, the national e‑wallet BenefitPay, ATMs, POS terminals and other rails under the oversight of the Central Bank of Bahrain. ^[10]
- Alipay+ acts as a “global wallet gateway,” routing payments from partner e‑wallets and apps (such as Alipay in mainland China and other regional wallets) to merchants around the world. ^[11]
Enabling cross‑border QR payments, starting with inbound flows
- In the first phase, tourists and business travellers using an Alipay+ partner wallet will be able to scan a BENEFIT QR code at Bahraini merchants and pay directly from their home app, in their own currency. ^[12]
Exploring outbound payments for Bahrain
- Over time, the partners want residents in Bahrain to pay abroad with familiar local methods—likely including BenefitPay—while the transaction is routed through Alipay+ to overseas merchants. ^[13]

The deal is currently at the MoU stage, meaning high‑level commercial and technical terms are in place, while detailed implementation, regulatory approvals and go‑live milestones still need to be worked through.

How media are covering it today, 25 November 2025

Although the original press release went out on 24 November 2025, coverage has continued into 25 November, particularly across payments‑industry and regional tech media:

The Paypers describes the project as a plan to “introduce cross‑border QR payments” linking Bahrain’s BENEFIT QR scheme with Alipay+ by 2026, highlighting that more than 15,000 domestic merchants may eventually accept wallets connected to the Alipay+ network. ^[14]
Financial IT stresses that the initiative is aimed at creating a more inclusive digital payments ecosystem and reiterates the scale of the Alipay+ network and the ambition to add outbound use cases for Bahraini consumers. ^[15]
Regional tech outlet Arageek frames the partnership as part of Bahrain’s bid to cement its status as a digital payments hub for the wider Gulf, rather than just another QR code upgrade. ^[16]
An item syndicated from Tech in Asia (via startupnews.fyi) focuses on the practical impact: more than 15,000 merchants in Bahrain will be able to accept QR payments from Alipay+ partner wallets once integration is complete. ^[17]

Together, these reports position the BENEFIT–Ant International tie‑up as one of the more strategically significant fintech announcements in the Gulf this week, rather than a routine tech integration.

How the BENEFIT–Alipay+ QR link is expected to work

For inbound visitors to Bahrain

If you’re a traveller from an Alipay+‑connected market (for example, someone using Alipay or another partner wallet in Asia), the vision looks like this:

At checkout:
You see a BENEFIT QR code at a café in Manama, a hotel in Seef District or a shop in the souk.
Scan & pay with your usual wallet:
Instead of signing up to a new local app, you simply open your familiar e‑wallet, scan the QR and authorise the payment.
Behind the scenes:
- Your wallet talks to Alipay+.
- Alipay+ routes the transaction through the new link to BENEFIT.
- BENEFIT settles funds to the merchant in Bahraini dinar, while you’re charged in your home currency where applicable. ^[18]

From the merchant’s point of view, they see the payment as just another BENEFIT QR transaction—no need to manage multiple foreign acquiring relationships.

For outbound Bahraini consumers (future phase)

Outbound payments are not live yet, but the MoU explicitly mentions the goal of enabling Bahrain‑based customers to use domestic digital payment methods abroad at Alipay+‑enabled merchants. ^[19]

In practice, that could mean:

A Bahraini traveller uses a local app (for example, BenefitPay or another BENEFIT‑connected wallet) in Singapore, Malaysia or South Korea.
They scan a QR code that is part of the local national scheme or an Alipay+ merchant.
The payment is routed via BENEFIT and Alipay+ with FX handled in the background.

If executed well, this would effectively turn a Bahraini digital wallet into a multi‑country travel payment tool, without users needing to juggle new apps or foreign‑currency cards.

Why this matters for Bahrain’s digital economy

Executives quoted in the press materials and subsequent analysis repeatedly return to the same themes: regional hub ambitions, digital transformation and investment appeal.

BENEFIT’s CEO Abdulwahed AlJanahi has framed the partnership as a way to expand the company’s global footprint and reinforce Bahrain’s position as a regional centre for fintech and advanced payment solutions, while giving users a more “secure, seamless and world‑class” experience. ^[20]
Coverage on Intellectia and Arageek notes that the tie‑up aligns with Bahrain’s longer‑term strategy to grow as a knowledge‑based, digital‑first economy and to attract high‑value international partnerships. ^[21]

From a policy and ecosystem perspective, the deal checks several strategic boxes:

Payments interoperability
By connecting a national system directly with a large global wallet network, Bahrain reduces fragmentation for both consumers and merchants—something small businesses in the region have long complained about.
Tourism & retail boost
Easier payments for visitors (especially from high‑spending Asian markets using Alipay+ wallets) can translate into higher conversion rates at hotels, malls and tourist hotspots.
Signal to investors and fintechs
Plugging into a high‑profile global network helps position Bahrain as an open, interoperable platform for new fintech products, rather than a closed, purely domestic market.

What it means for tourists, merchants and wallet providers

For tourists and business travellers

Less friction: No need to carry large amounts of cash or rely on international cards that may be declined or incur high FX fees.
Familiar interface: You can keep using the same digital wallet UI you already trust.
Transparent pricing: In many Alipay+ deployments, users can see real‑time FX rates and transaction details within their own app (exact UX for Bahrain will depend on implementation).

For Bahraini merchants

Access to new customer segments: A single QR code potentially opens the door to over 1.8 billion accounts across multiple e‑wallets. ^[22]
Simpler acceptance: Merchants don’t need a separate terminal or integration just for Alipay+; BENEFIT handles the acquiring and settlement on the back end.
Potentially better economics: Depending on fee structures and FX arrangements, accepting QR‑based wallet payments can be cheaper than some traditional card transactions, especially for smaller tickets.

For wallet providers and fintech partners

Broader footprint without local build‑out: Alipay+ partner wallets gain acceptance in Bahrain without needing to individually connect to each local bank or acquirer.
Template for other Gulf markets: If the Bahrain rollout goes smoothly, it could serve as a reference model for similar QR‑based integrations elsewhere in the GCC.

How this fits into Alipay+’s global QR strategy

The Bahrain initiative is not happening in isolation. According to the official materials, Alipay+ is already integrated with ten national QR payment schemes in markets including Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. ^[23]

Earlier this year, Ant International also opened its first Middle East office in Riyadh, signalling a broader push into the region’s payments and fintech landscape. ^[24]

Seen through that lens, Bahrain is:

Another node in a growing network of national QR systems connected via Alipay+.
A strategic foothold in the Gulf, complementing Ant’s presence in Saudi Arabia and its long‑standing dominance in parts of Asia.

If Alipay+ can routinely plug local QR schemes and real‑time payment systems into a global wallet network, the result is a loose, multi‑country “QR internet for money” that competes with traditional card networks and remittance channels.

Timeline, risks and what to watch next

2026 launch — but how fast?

The partners are aiming for a 2026 go‑live, but important details are still to come:

Regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of Bahrain and potentially other authorities.
Technical work to ensure interoperability, security, KYC/AML compliance and real‑time settlement.
Merchant education and roll‑out, particularly in segments like tourism, hospitality and retail.

Implementation of similar QR and wallet integrations in other countries has often happened in phases—starting with a pilot group of merchants and gradually expanding to mass roll‑out.

Key questions to follow

Scope of phase one
- Will the initial launch cover all 15,000+ merchants, or a narrower set focused on tourist and high‑traffic areas?
Outbound timeline
- How quickly will Bahraini consumers be able to use their local wallets abroad, and in which Alipay+ markets will they be accepted first?
Regional ripple effect
- Will neighbouring Gulf countries pursue comparable QR‑based links with Alipay+ or other wallet networks, creating a more interoperable Gulf payments corridor?

For now, Bahrain’s BENEFIT–Ant International partnership is one of the clearest signs yet that national QR schemes and global e‑wallet gateways are converging—with 2026 shaping up as a key year for seeing whether that convergence delivers on its promise.

GCASH, CAN USED PAYMENTS WHILE IN ABROAD VIA ALIPAY MODE OF PAYMENT.