[1] It originated in China before spreading across parts of Southeast Asia and other countries with sizable ethnic Chinese populations.

In the mid-2010s, a digital equivalent to the practice emerged within messaging apps with mobile wallet systems localized for the Chinese New Year, particularly WeChat.

It is common to see long bank queues before Chinese New Year holding people waiting to acquire new bills.

In northern and southern China, red envelopes are typically given by the elders to those under 25 (30 in most of the three northeastern provinces), regardless of marital status.

[6] It is traditional to give an actor a red packet when he or she is to play a dead character, or pose for a picture for an obituary or a grave stone.

Red packets are also used to deliver payment for favorable service to lion dance performers, religious practitioners, teachers, and doctors.

[7] In the Chinese communities of Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Macao, it is also customary for red packets to be given to service staff, such as security guards, cleaners, domestic helpers and doormen during the first few days of the Lunar New Year.

The launch included an on-air promotion during the CCTV New Year's Gala — China's most-watched television special — where viewers could win red envelopes as prizes.

People created a type of coin to ward off evil spirits, "yasheng qian" (Chinese: 压胜钱; pinyin: yāshèng qián), which was inscribed with auspicious words, such as "May you live a long and successful life".

In the Tang dynasty, the Chinese New Year was seen as the beginning of spring, and in addition to congratulations, elders gave money to children to ward off evil spirits.

The book Qīng Jiā Lù (清嘉录) recorded that "elders give children coins threaded together by a red string, the money is called yasui qian.

"[13] From the Republic of China (1912–1949) era, it evolved into 100 coins wrapped in red paper, meaning "May you live a hundred years!".

In Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), and Cambodia, the Chinese diaspora and immigrants introduced the practice of red envelopes.

Common greetings include "Sống lâu trăm tuổi" (𤯩𥹰𤾓歲), "An khang thịnh vượng" (安康興旺), "Vạn sự như ý" (萬事如意) and "Sức khỏe dồi dào" (飭劸洡𤁠), wishing health and prosperity.

[17] A similar practice, shūgi-bukuro (祝儀袋), is observed for Japanese weddings, but the envelope is folded rather than sealed, and decorated with an elaborate bow, called mizuhiki (水引).

Filipinos with no Chinese heritage appropriated the custom for occasions such as birthdays and in giving monetary aguinaldo during Christmas and New Year.

While present in the Qur'an, sadaqah is less formally established than the sometimes similar practice of zakat, and in many cultures this takes a form closer to gift-giving and generosity among friends than charity.

The tradition of ang pao was adopted by local Indian Hindu populations of Singapore and Malaysia for Deepavali.