A journalist experiences the mobile payment tool of Wechat Pay at a 7-Eleven convenience store. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese technology giant Tencent Tuesday dismissed reports saying it has been running internal tests on a new type of touchless palm payment function. 

"The palm-scanning payment is in the stage of an internal technical research by WeChat. There is no testing or application plan at the moment," Tencent told the Global Times. 

Tencent's omnipotent social media app WeChat has reached more than 1 billion Chinese people's lives. Its e-payment function, or WeChat Pay, has gradually replaced cash across many major cities. 

At present, payment by password, fingerprint and facial recognition technology remain the most popular methods. China has been strengthening regulations on the use of facial recognition, barring apps from indiscriminate collection of unnecessary personal information. 

But, palm-scanning payment may represent a new flashpoint. By scanning a user's palm print and detecting veins, the technology can recognize and verify unique features. 

Amazon has been testing palm-scanning payment technology in US supermarket business Whole Foods, starting with a single store in Amazon's home city of Seattle in April, the Verge reported. 

Rolling out the technology would require a large database of biometric information linked to users, leading some experts to raise concerns over user privacy, the report said. 

Global Times