Starbucks, a pioneer in mobile payments in the US, is launching its service nationwide in China.

The coffee chain enables members of its rewards programme to make payments at more than 2,200 Starbucks stores across China using their mobile devices.

Reward programme members can pre-load gift cards in stores across China and add the cards to their Starbucks China Mobile App (version 4.0). Payments are made by cashiers scanning a QR code on their handset at the point of sale.

Members will also be able to manage their card account, check their card balance and find a nearby Starbucks store with the store locator feature.

China is potentially a massive market for the service. More than 21 percent of transactions at Starbucks stores in the US now come through the app.

The company has previously said it intends to bring its Mobile Order & Pay feature, which enables users to order and pay for their coffee via their mobile device before collecting it in store, to China too. The feature is designed to minimise queuing for customers, and is also more convenient for the coffee chain. Mobile Order & Pay is due to debut in China during 2016.