SK Planet said Monday that the number of users of its mobile payment platform has exceeded 5 million since the company launched it two years ago.

Named “Smart Wallet,” the mobile platform allows consumers to use coupons, gift cards, royalty and credit cards via their smartphones without having to carry all of different plastic cards for shopping.

The platform was launched in June 2010, and hit 1 million users in nine months, and 3 million November last year, the company said.

SK Planet, the mobile platform-operating subsidiary of SK Telecom, has issued 12 million royalty or point cards, and has formed strategic partnerships with over 50 retailers and shopping malls.

It is currently foraying into the convenience store space by seeking alliances with nationwide store operators and boosting services in mobile gift cards.

Also, the company has formed an alliance with Hana Bank, with which SK Telecom has a joint venture in the credit card business, in mobile financial payment services.

SK Planet also noted that of 5 million users, about 1 million are customers who use telecommunication services of KT and LG Uplus.

This means consumers of other telecom networks are not restricted to subscribe and use the company’s Smart Wallet platform.

The company has given an introduction of its mobile payment platform at the 2012 Mobile Asia Expo where SK Planet participated as the only tech firm with such service.

Google has approached SK Planet for a partnership in the field. The global search engine has Google Wallet in the U.S.

As the company has topped 5 million in users domestically, SK Planet will move to strengthen its Smart Wallet platform to be globally competitive, said Kim Soo-il, senior vice president of SK Planet’s commerce business unit.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)