This photo taken on June 27, 2017 shows a woman looking at QR codes used for scanning payments at a seafood stall at a market in Beijing. China was the first country in the world to use paper money but centuries later the soaring popularity of mobile payment has some analysts forecasting it could be the first to stop. / AFP PHOTO / WANG ZHAO / TO GO WITH China economy internet, FOCUS by Allison JACKSON
Yang Qianqian holds out her smartphone to scan a barcode on the mobile of a vendor selling fresh fruit and vegetables at a bustling outdoor market in Beijing.
The dance student is part of an explosion in the use of mobile payment platforms in China as consumers increasingly take out phones instead of cash to pay for everything from a coffee to a language class or a gas bill.
