China's e-commerce will double its growth

According to a research just released by MasterCard Inc., China will see double-digit annual growth in credit card transaction volumes, mainly due to the booming e-commerce industry in the world's second-largest economy.

China's plan to open up its domestic transactions market to foreign companies such as MasterCard would be a "game-changer", Ling Hai, co-president for Asia Pacific at MasterCard said in an interview with Reuters during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit.

"That's going to change with China opening up. We will be able to process domestic transactions just like a domestic national player," Ling Hai said, adding that the time line for this move remains unclear.

MasterCard's current business in China is mostly handling cross-border transactions when international travellers come to China or when Chinese cardholders go overseas. Until now, the domestic market has long been dominated by state-backed China UnionPay.

"If you truly gain full access and get it right, China is a game-changer," further explains the co-president for Asia Pacific at MasterCard."China is the future in terms of consumer market. It will contribute a great deal in terms of spending and volume."

As a good sample of how the e-commerce industry is flourishing in China, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's (BABA.N) total value of goods transacted during its Singles' Day shopping festival reached 91.2 billion yuan (14.32 billion dollars).

MasterCard has already processed "millions" of transactions for Alibaba and Chinese online payment service Tenpay in the cross-border space, Ling Hai said. "The development of e-commerce is our best friend," he concluded.