Core Insights - Visa and Mastercard are making progress in accessing the Chinese payments market through partnerships, with Visa's latest deal involving a connection between Visa Direct and UnionPay's MoneyExpress platform [1][3] Market Potential - China's payments market is projected to reach $47 trillion by 2026 and exceed $70 trillion by 2031, indicating significant growth potential [2][6] - Visa holds a 39% share of the global credit card market, while UnionPay has 34%, and Mastercard has 24%, but their shares in China are minimal compared to UnionPay's dominance [2] Partnership Details - The Visa and UnionPay partnership will allow Visa customers to send cross-border remittances and business-to-consumer payouts to over 95% of UnionPay International debit cardholders in mainland China [3] - The connection is expected to be operational in the first half of the year and will support various payment needs, including freelancer payouts and family remittances [5] Industry Context - China is recognized as one of the most advanced real-time payments markets globally, with a mobile-first consumer base that has widely adopted digital payments [4] - The collaboration between Visa and UnionPay is seen as a strategic move to navigate the regulatory challenges and expand their reach in the Chinese market [6]