Earlier this year GlobalCollect opened offices in Shanghai and Beijing having had its Asia-Pacific regional headquarters in Singapore since 2008.

This expansion will better enable GlobalCollect to deliver its payments knowledge across a region which is experiencing the most growth in online commerce.

Key regional trends and drivers include:

Japan:
• The e-commerce market in Japan is expected to grow from $128 billion in 2012 to $182 billion by 2016.
• In 2012, m-commerce accounted for almost 25% of online revenues in Japan. Increasing penetration of m-commerce is set to drive growth in overall e-commerce revenues during 2012-16.

Australia:
• The m-commerce market in Australia has grown from $155 million in 2010 to $5.6 billion in 2012 and this is expected to grow further with anticipated increases in smartphone penetration.
• In 2012, e-commerce constituted 6.3% of total retail sales in Australia, up from 5.5% in 2011.
The respective offices will be headed-up by experienced payment professionals.

Jason Lee has taken the role of Country Manager, Japan, and is based in Tokyo. Mr. Lee has been with GlobalCollect for four years and will drive the delivery of payment services to the country's expanding e/m-commerce market.

Matthew Rainbow has joined GlobalCollect in the role of Country Manager, Australia, and is based in Brisbane. Mr. Rainbow is a veteran of the payments industry with more than 14 years experience with industry leading organizations like TNS, Visa International, Wright Express and Mint Mobile.

"With online retail rapidly growing throughout the Asia Pacific region, we are seeing an increased demand for our services." Mark Patrick, General Manager, Asia Pacific at GlobalCollect commented: "We know that the most appropriate way to deliver the value of our experience and knowledge to each specific market is to fully immerse ourselves in that market. Both Jth Jason and Matthew are seasoned payments professionals and will benefit our customers with their deep knowledge of their market and the challenges and solutions required to be successful in growing their business."

In addition to the expansion within the region, GlobalCollect is conducting its Insights event for merchants to gain knowledge on how to accelerate their growth in the Asia Pacific region. Insights will be held in Vietnam from September 25th - 27th . The Asia Pacific Insights event follows similar Insights events in the Europe, Middle East and Africa and Latin America regions. The Insights events are highly regarded by the attendees for the quality of the market and industry knowledge shared coupled with the ability for attendees to collaborate and share common experiences and learning's with fellow market participants.