ZaloPay scores a national first with Shopify deal

ZaloPay has become the first e-wallet in Vietnam to participate in the payment system of the world's leading e-commerce platform Shopify.

Officially announcing the collaboration Friday, ZaloPay said the two sides aim to promote the "Brand.com" website model in Vietnam, thereby assisting Vietnamese businesses in staying abreast of market innovations.

Under the “Brand.com” model, enterprises create and run their own websites, contributing to the expansion of sales channels outside general e-commerce platforms.

Canada headquartered Shopify is a leading global commerce company that offers essential internet infrastructure for commerce as well as “trusted tools” for starting, growing, marketing and operating a retail business of any size.

It has the largest commerce ecosystem in the industry with over 40,000 app developers, theme designers and other partners who allow a wide range of customization capabilities to meet brand development and other needs of many industries.

Shopify is recognized by millions of online businesses in over 175 countries, including the top 100 U.S. companies listed annually by the Fortune magazine.

“With technical resources and an extensive network of partners, ZaloPay hopes to bridge the gap between Shopify and businesses in Vietnam. This collaboration, we believe, is a significant step for ZaloPay in introducing and replicating the ‘Brand.com’ website model in the Vietnamese business community. Furthermore, ZaloPay hopes to strengthen relationships with new partners who are active brands on the Shopify platform,” said ZaloPay’s chief executive officer Le Lan Chi.

“More businesses in Vietnam are realising the benefits of e-commerce to accelerate growth, and we see continued growth in merchants in Vietnam using Shopify to accelerate their online business," said Bharati Balakrishnan, Shopify’s country head and director for Southeast Asia and India.

"Payments are an integral part of the commerce journey online, and we are excited to partner with the top local e-wallet ZaloPay to provide a more user-friendly experience for end consumers of our merchants," she added.

Analysts have said that Vietnam's digital economy is rapidly expanding thanks to two critical components: logistics and payment infrastructure. The rapid growth of e-commerce makes it an important component of the digital economy.

According to the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the number of businesses owning websites in Vietnam accounted for approximately 43% in 2021. Among the 4,000 websites and apps that have confirmed they will notify and register with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, up to 44.4% have online sales functions.