Cultural differences in QR code usage between eastern and western countries

Even though I have only had limited travel experiences in Asian countries like China, Taiwan, Japan and Korea, it is evident that there are plenty of cases where QR code is much more pervasive in applications like transport and retail compared to western countries like US, Australia and UK.

Is there any specific reason for these differences, at least when it comes to anything that can be explained by technology and business constraints rather than cultural differences? And if it is really an issue of cultural differences, what is the reason for it and how does it apply in countries where there is a good mix of eastern and western cultures like Singapore and Hong Kong?