Tesco is set to use China as the testing ground for the launch of a paperless Clubcard, CEO Philip Clarke revealed today.

Speaking at the World Retail Congress in Singapore, Clarke said Tesco planned to bypass traditional mail, which posed huge logistical problems in the country, by launching a digital Clubcard.

He said it was part of Tesco’s plan to turn into a technology company, rather than just a retailer.

Tesco is launching its online ordering and delivery service in Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur in the next few weeks and in Shanghai in the summer.

“In China we’re leapfrogging the establishment of a modern mail system by launching digital Clubcard over the coming year,” Clarke said.

“One of the most exciting things is that our digital innovation is being driven and refined by the demands of our Asian markets.”

The move has potentially big implications for the UK.

Ultimately Tesco wants to make its Clubcard system paperless across the globe. The Grocer revealed in October that it was looking at ways to ramp up personalisation using the web and smartphones, with more than 300,000 customers opting out of receiving paper coupons in the last quarter of last year alone.