Shenzhen is stepping up efforts to improve payment services for overseas visitors and to better support international events and business exchanges as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings approach and cross-boundary travel by Hong Kong residents and inbound foreign tourists continues to grow.

The city has intensified its push to build a more inclusive and efficient payment environment through measures covering bank cards, mobile payments, cash services and digital yuan applications.

A key area of focus has been on improving the payment infrastructure and cash service facilities. More than 41,000 merchants and 51,000 point-of-sale terminals across the city now accept overseas bank cards, according to the People's Bank of China Shenzhen Branch.

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Meanwhile, more than 3,600 ATM machines support cash withdrawals using overseas bank cards, with over 1,600 bank outlets, 40 foreign currency exchange institutions and 23 currency exchange points providing foreign currency exchange services, covering all the currencies of the 21 APEC member economies.

Beyond cash services, Shenzhen has also expanded mobile payment accessibility. Payment platforms have simplified account registration and card-binding procedures for overseas users, while more than 40 overseas e-wallets are now supported for QR-code payments in the city.

To further address visitors’ needs, Shenzhen has established five comprehensive service centers — at Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport, Shenzhen Bay Port, Futian and Luohu ports, and Longhua’s commercial areas. By the end of June, the centers had provided payment-related services to nearly 40,000 visitors.

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“We are continuously improving payment services for overseas visitors by enhancing payment infrastructure, expanding service channels and optimizing application scenarios,” said Su Yuyu, deputy director of the payment and settlement division (operations office) of the Shenzhen Branch of the People’s Bank of China.

“Through these measures, we aim to further improve the payment experience of overseas visitors in Shenzhen and provide more convenient and efficient financial services for international exchanges, including major events such as APEC,” Su said.

The efforts come as Shenzhen prepares to host the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in mid-November and continues to see a growing number of Hong Kong residents traveling across the boundary, which has created greater demand for more convenient and accessible payment services.

Shenzhen ports recorded 72.63 million cross-boundary passenger trips in the first quarter, up 14.2 percent year-on-year, with Hong Kong residents accounting for 72.36 percent of land port traffic, according to the Office of Port of Entry and Exit of the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government.

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Shenzhen’s inbound tourism market has also continued to expand thanks to the country’s optimized visa-free policy. Overseas visitor arrivals and departures via Shenzhen ports hit 2 million this year as of March 29, up more than 30 percent year-on-year. Among them, those arriving visa-free accounted for 59 percent of total foreign inbound visitors.

Meanwhile, Shenzhen is continuing to expand cross-border renminbi applications to facilitate trade and investment. In the first half of 2026, the city’s cross-border RMB settlement volume reached 3.8 trillion yuan ($561 billion), up 37.9 percent year-on-year and ranking third nationwide.

The city has promoted broader RMB applications in trade settlement by encouraging financial institutions to provide tailored services for enterprises. Shenzhen’s cross-border RMB receipts and payments under goods trade totaled 836.4 billion yuan in the first six months, increasing by 50.2 percent year-on-year.

Chen Yanshan contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at sally@chinadailyhk.com