Kathmandu, May 22 (UNI) Nepal has banned popular Chinese digital wallets Alipay and WeChat to prevent the loss of foreign currency earnings from tens of thousands of Chinese tourists.
According to the media reports here, over 150,000 Chinese holidaymakers visited Nepal last year, many using digital wallets to pay in hotels, restaurants and shops in tourist areas — especially in Chinese-run businesses.
Laxmi Prapanna Niroula, a spokesman for the country’s central bank which announced the ban on Monday, said that Nepal was losing out since the actual transactions took place in China.