Octopus expands footprint amidst eVoucher scheme

The Hong Kong government is set to give out the second batch of eVouchers tomorrow with users of AlipayHK, Tap & Go and WeChat Pay HK all receiving the remaining HK$3,000. Citizens using Octopus will get HK$2,000 and another HK$1,000 will be dispersed from 16 December, which means the majority of Hong Kong citizens will get the money in two phases as 70% of 6.3 million qualified residents chose Octopus for the eVouchers.

According to multiple reports including the South China Morning Post and The Standard, Octopus' sales and marketing director Rita Li Yuk-yi said in a radio programme that distribution of the first installment of HK$2,000 had been conducted smoothly, despite some customers thought that the vouchers would be automatically deposited onto their Octopus cards. She added that users of Octopus had spent most of their money on groceries. When it came to the categories that enjoyed the highest growth, consumer electronics and F&B at hotels outperformed other categories. For example, customers usually spent more than HK$1,000 on consumer electronics. Meanwhile, stores at wet markets were more willing to accept customers to pay via Octopus, Li said some stores owners were considering to rent the card reader after the eVoucher scheme ends. 

As of mid-September, Octopus added about 30,000 merchants with many of them being consumer electronics, hotel restaurants, online stores, jewelry and gold, fashion apparel, as well as beauty products. Li added that Octopus will work with other payment platforms in the upcoming months and overseas brands' online stores to expand its footprint. 

Apart from Octopus, 20% of eligible registrants of the eVoucher scheme opted for AlipayHK, with other users spread between Tap & Go and WeChat Pay HK. The four platforms were the mandated payment service providers for the Hong Kong government’s HK$36 billion consumption voucher scheme, aimed at boosting the local economy amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong government said as of 28 September, there were 6,537,361 electronic registrations and 392,376 paper registration forms received. More than 5.47 million of eligible registrants received the first batch of eVouchers on 1 August, and about 809,000 registrants received the money on 1 September.   Shopping malls in Hong Kong are waiting for citizens to spend again after receiving the second batch of eVouchers. For example, customers can get up to HK$500 rebate by spending consumption vouchers across shopping malls under Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP). Citizens will also receive two electronic coupons for designated malls or shops worth HK$20 and HK$50 by spending up to HK$500 and HK$1,000, as well as a coupon for SHKP malls worth HK$30 by spending up to HK$600 via Octopus card.

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