Tencent is developing a credit scoring system as it ramps up its battle with rival Alibaba for a share of China’s $5.5tn mobile payments market.
腾讯(Tencent)正在开发一种信用评分系统。在中国5.5万亿美元的移动支付市场上，该公司加大了与阿里巴巴(Alibaba)争夺市场份额的力度。
Ant Financial, Alibaba’s payments affiliate, launched its Sesame Credit two years ago, parlaying its data on consumers into a measure of their trustworthiness, providing comfort for small businesses and consumers alike.
两年前，阿里巴巴的支付业务关联公司蚂蚁金服(Ant Financial)上线了芝麻信用(Sesame Credit)，利用其掌握的消费者数据来评估他们的信用，为小企业和消费者带来安慰。
Alipay, the mobile payment service of Ant Financial, has 520m users.
蚂蚁金服的手机支付服务支付宝(Alipay)目前拥有5.2亿用户。
Tencent now aims to launch a similar service, which likewise accounts for users’ social and financial histories to assess their credit risk.
腾讯现在打算推出一项类似服务，同样利用用户的社交与财务记录来评估他们的信用风险。
Credit scoring is popular in China, especially among younger subscribers who lack a credit history but might be eligible for a high rating that would let them rent hotel rooms, bikes or phone chargers without leaving a deposit. The services are particularly valuable given the lack of access to credit cards in the country.
信用评分在中国很受欢迎，尤其是在比较年轻的订户当中。这些人缺乏信用记录，但也许应该获得高评级，让他们不必交押金就能租住酒店客房，租用自行车或手机充电器。鉴于在中国难以获得信用卡，这些服务尤其有价值。
Tencent is testing a credit scoring service among a small group of its subscribers, upping the stakes as the two tech titans engage in an aggressive promotion this week encouraging Chinese to forgo cash in favour of payments made with a swipe of the phone.
腾讯正在一小群订户中试验一项信用评分服务，从而加大了押注，两大科技巨头本周在开展一场声势浩大的推广活动，鼓励中国人放弃使用现金，转而刷手机支付。
China is streets ahead of the rest of the world in mobile payments — its market is more than 50 times the size of the US — buoyed by a boom in online shopping and the dearth of alternatives such as credit cards. iResearch said China’s mobile payments hit $5.5tn last year, 50 times the size of the US’s $112bn market, based on Forrester Research figures.
中国在移动支付领域远远领先于世界其他地区——市场规模高于美国的50倍——其动力在于在线购物的繁荣和信用卡等替代选择缺乏。艾瑞咨询(iResearch)表示，去年中国移动支付市场规模达到5.5万亿美元，而根据福里斯特调查公司(Forrester Research)的数据，美国移动支付市场规模为1120亿美元，这意味着中国移动支付市场规模为美国的50倍。
The sector is dominated by the country’s two biggest tech groups. While Alibaba long commanded the lion’s share, it has recently been ceding ground to Tencent.
中国移动支付行业被两大科技巨头所主宰。尽管阿里巴巴长期占据最大份额，但近来腾讯夺走了一些地盘。
Tencent’s share rose to 39.5 per cent in the first quarter of the year, according to data from consultancy Analysys, while Alipay dipped to 53.7 per cent. That compared with respective 16 per cent and 71 per cent shares seen in the third quarter of 2015.
咨询机构易观国际(Analysys)数据显示，今年第一季度，腾讯的市场份额上升至39.5%，而阿里巴巴的份额则下滑至53.7%。这与2015年第三季度形成反差，当时腾讯份额为16%，阿里巴巴份额为71%。
Matthew Brennan, co-founder of tech consultancy China Channel, said Tencent’s move into credit scoring demonstrated its desire to build on its payments business, which is largely restricted to small transactions in convenience stores and peer-to-peer lending.
科技咨询公司China Channel联合创始人马修?布伦南(Matthew Brennan)表示，腾讯进入信用评分领域表明，该公司希望加强其支付业务——目前主要局限在便利店小额交易和P2P借贷。
Tencent has been signing up scores of physical stores this year, including Starbucks. Almost all of the US group’s 2,600 China cafés accept Weixin Pay — the one on Alibaba’s campus in Hangzhou being a notable exception.
今年，腾讯一直在与包括星巴克(Starbucks)在内的大量实体店签约。这家美国集团的几乎所有2600家中国咖啡厅都已接受微信支付(Weixin Pay)——杭州阿里巴巴园区的星巴克成为一个引人注目的例外。
“Tencent obviously wants to change that, and they need to build up infrastructure to compete with Alipay’s more mature offering,” he said. “Credit scoring is an essential part of that.”
“腾讯明显想改变局面，他们需要强化基础设施来跟阿里巴巴更成熟的产品与服务展开竞争，”他说，“信用评分是其中一个必不可少的部分。”
Both players have made big use of promotions, culminating in this week’s frenzy. Tuesday is the last day of Alipay’s “Golden Week”, when users will receive randomly allotted cash back, ranging from Rmb0.88 to Rmb4,888 ($0.13 to $728). Tencent begins its promotional day on Tuesday — August 8, which sounds like “wealth” in mandarin.
两个对手都进行了大力推广，在本周达到疯狂顶点。周二是阿里巴巴“黄金周”的最后一天。在该活动中，用户将随机收到奖励金，从0.88元人民币至4888元人民币（0.13美元至728美元）不等。腾讯在8月8日周二启动推广日——8在汉语里听起来像是“发”。
Tencent could not be reached for comment.
记者联系不上腾讯请其置评。
