QR code payments are no longer just a novelty. According to a report by Fintech Alliance, PayXpert is showcasing its QR code payment solutions at the Retail Technology Show, expanding Alipay+ and WeChat Pay acceptance in the UK. This indicates that the technology is entering the mainstream particularly in retail, hospitality, and transport.
Recent data from Juniper Research predicts QR spend will exceed £2.3 trillion globally by 2025. In the UK, open banking QR options are also gaining traction, offering a low-cost alternative to card networks for small businesses.
For independent merchants, QR codes offer:
· Lower hardware costs (no terminals),
· Seamless integration with mobile POS or loyalty systems,
· Flexibility across in-store and takeaway settings.
Here’s a simple guide that breaks down how QR code payments work, setup steps, and how they compare to traditional processing fees:
QR code payments for UK businesses: A simple guide
Is anyone here already testing QR for walk-in traffic or in hospitality? Are business owners seeing genuine cost savings, or is it still a novelty? Curious to hear what’s working and what’s not.
I was actually thinking earlier how badly I want an Alipay+ partner in the UK. Like, in Korea sometimes places took Naver Pay or ZeroPay and I was just… cooked. Card isn’t usable everywhere; luckily UnionPay had an integration with ZeroPay.
Meanwhile non-mainland Chinese can’t actually use Alipay outside of China (and I’m scared to try with my AlipayHK account, too); would be great if there were some sort of integration with Wero (and it supported GBP/EUR) or we had some sort of UK domestic QR payment scheme that would work. I saw VibePay a while back but it’s kinda dead.
I’d even be for some sort of DeFi crypto system that also supports different payment eWallets (like MuseWallet but something not based on Ethereum where transactions can take 5+m to clear). Maybe Coinbase could work on something like this and introduce a GBP stablecoin alongside Circle
Totally hear you, the QR payment experience in the UK is still super fragmented, especially if you’re used to options like Naver Pay or ZeroPay in Korea. Right now, Alipay+ is expanding via DNA Payments. Over 50,000 UK merchants can now accept 14+ partner wallets via QR or POS, which is a step forward, but still mostly geared toward inbound tourists.
For locals or non-mainland Chinese users, it’s trickier. There’s no unified domestic QR scheme yet, though some fintechs like Noda are working on QR-based Pay-by-Bank solutions with flat fees, which could help smaller UK merchants adopt alternative payments. We really need a local QR scheme that works across UK banks and wallets with better cross-wallet support (AlipayHK, Wero, etc.) Something faster and lighter than Ethereum for DeFi-style payments (MuseWallet is cool, but slow tx times are a dealbreaker). Would love to see Coinbase or even a UK fintech push a GBP stablecoin with wallet interoperability. The tech is there, it just needs someone to connect the dots.
How are systems like this protected from abuse? It appears from the UK car parking scene that putting a dodgy QR code on a sticker and covering the genuine one is trivially easy.
You often don’t know where the QR code links to until you land on the dodgy site.
That’s a valid concern. QR fraud does happen, especially in unattended environments. Best practice includes tamper-evident displays, dynamic QR codes linked to secure domains, and educating users to verify URLs. Payment providers are working to mitigate this.
Tried using AlipayHK in Vietnam (ZaloPay is an Alipay+ partner) but seems that I’m out of luck on it. When I’m in Vietnam for longer I will open a bank account.
I suspect in order for such a system to work, you would need to turn your society into an Orwellian nightmare.
I think I’ll stick with debit and credit cards. 
Isn’t this what Swish in Sweden does? I was concerned about this because I can foresee a situation - like Maestro in the Netherlands was - where shops in Sweden will only accept Swish, for which you need a linked (Swedish) bank account.