A new report has revealed that 70 per cent of cross-border WeChat Pay transactions in Hong Kong and Macau are made by women.

The transactions were predominantly used for spending on cosmetics and beauty products, and grew sevenfold in the first half of this year, with the expansion of the platform to include taxis, restaurant payments, and other services. By next year, this “she economy” may be valued at US$700 billion. The study also found that 55 per cent of the transactions were made by women born after 1990.

The study was commissioned by Tencent, the China Development Institute and Chinese travel social network Mafengwo. It analysed data from 1 billion WeChat users, including 800 million using WeChat Pay and 130 million using Mafengwo. The study highlighted the demand for mobile payments in cross-border tourism and consumption.

Around 700,000 people travel between Hong Kong and Mainland China every day.