Beggars In China Are Accepting Mobile Payments, So You Can't Say You Don't Have 'Loose Change'

Giving alms to a beggar is regarded as ¡®doing good¡¯ in cultures across the world, and beggars have a way to force people into contributing some money. But there are times when it can get a little annoying.

We've all, at some point, tried to fend off pesky beggars on the streets with the 'sorry, no spare change' excuse, and more often than not it works.

But what if the beggars adapted to the conveniences of modern day payment methods? Things can then get a little tricky and that's the issue people in China are dealing with.

A beggar approached us while we were having drinks on the sidewalk in Shanghai. I said nobody carried cash anymore in China. He said you could just scan the QR code and pay me via WeChat pay. pic.twitter.com/R9Tq6cpfGe

¡ª Hao Wu (@beijingloafer) 24 May 2019

Beggars on the streets of China have no taken to online mobile payments with QR codes and have ditch the tin cans for collecting money.

According to reports, these beggars strategically position themselves in crowded tourist areas to collect money. In China, anyone with apps like Alipay, WeChat Wallet (the two biggest e-wallet companies in China), or some other mobile payment app that can read the QR code can make the payment

(because they have no option).

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The ¡®QR code beggars¡® have become a common sight following the massive technological boom in China. China has the transition to a cash-free economy faster than any other country in the world. The economy in China is literally dependent on the two-dimensional scannable codes.

Reports state that the beggars who use these QR codes don't have to own a mobile phone. The individual just needs a library where an account can be set up and the digital wallet for use, reports the Financial Express.

Mobile payment in China, even beggar needs a QR code pic.twitter.com/H5sGKLRNW0

¡ª Roy Zhang (@Royzhangyi) 27 August 2017

Closer home, in India things changed after demonetisation and lot of businesses included the local panwallahs started using the PayTM app to get payments done in an instant and since 2016 it's a practice that's been religiously followed.

While cashless payment is popular among beggars in China there's some shady business involved in this too. According to e beggars are paid by small businesses and local start-ups for every scan they receive.

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The shady part being that the scans allow these businesses to extract user data via the e-Wallet applications. All of the data that's been harvested is then compiled and later sold for marketing.

According to Financial Express, the beggars get anywhere between Rs 7to15 for each scan that they make and this in turn helps in the growth and promotion of the small businesses.

According to a South China Morning post report, it's not just the beggars who use the QR code payment method from waiters at restaurants to brides at weddings wear a QR tag to collect tips and gifts respectively.

The QR code system was invented in 1994 by the Japanese company Denso Wave with the purpose to track vehicles during manufacturing, The coding system slowly transitioned to online payments in South Korea and Japan, but none have seen success as great as China in this payment system.