Chinese online video platform Bilibili has acquired an online payment license via purchasing a majority stake in an online payment company, taking it closer to launching its own e-payment functionality for over 200 million users, reports Caixin. Bilibili purchased a 65.5% stake in Zhejiang Yongyi Payment for RMB 118 million ($18.5 million) from the online payment firm’s state-owned shareholders.
Yongyi is one of more than 200 Chinese companies that hold third-party online payment licenses issued by China’s central bank. Bilibili will start an internal test of the payment system with livestreaming e-retailers on its platform, an insider from the company told Caixin.
As livestreaming becomes a booming force in Chinese e-commerce, video platforms have started to acquire online payment licenses to build closed-loop e-commerce businesses.