SingTel and Visa today announced a strategic alliance that will enable consumers in Singapore and Australia to pay for goods and services using their smartphones at all Visa payWave acceptance points worldwide.

Visa is working with SingTel to link Visa prepaid accounts to mCash, SingTel's mobile money solution.

Slated for launch in early 2014, the service will allow mCash customers to wave and pay with their NFC-enabled smartphones for daily necessities such as coffee, fast food, groceries and movie tickets at Visa payWave acceptance points.

NFC, short for near field communication, is a wireless connectivity technology that enables convenient short-range communication between electronic devices.

There are currently more than 12,000 Visa payWave acceptance points in Singapore and over 100,000 across Australia.

Merchants that accept this payment mode in Singapore include supermarket chains NTUC FairPrice, Cold Storage and Sheng Siong as well as food establishments like Din Tai Fung Sakae Sushi.

Payments will not be limited to Singapore and Australia, and will extend beyond NFC transactions. Customers will also be able to make ecommerce purchases online by entering their Visa prepaid account number linked to their mCash account.

mCash is Singapore's first mobile money solution. Launched in April, it enables users to make payments quickly and easily through their mobile phones, while on the move.

It is available to subscribers of all mobile operators in Singapore.