Paystack, a leading fintech firm based in Nigeria, has recently expanded its innovative payment solutions to four additional African countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. This expansion is marked by the introduction of the company’s Virtual Terminal, a cutting-edge feature that streamlines the payment process for merchants and their customers in these regions.
With the Virtual Terminal, merchants have the ability to create personalized QR codes for their staff members, including cashiers, delivery personnel, and sales representatives. These QR codes serve as a unique payment gateway for customers, who can conveniently scan them to make payments using a variety of methods supported by Paystack, such as mobile money, credit/debit cards, or even Apple Pay.
Upon completion of a payment, the corresponding staff member is promptly notified of the successful transaction via WhatsApp. This immediate confirmation enhances the efficiency of the payment process and provides reassurance to both the customer and the merchant.
Additionally, the Virtual Terminal offers a high degree of flexibility and control to merchants. They can deactivate a QR code at any moment, modify the linked WhatsApp number, or configure the system to alert multiple WhatsApp contacts whenever a payment is processed.
In a statement, Paystack highlighted the operational advantages of this technology: “You simply create as many QR codes as you need and assign them to your sales agents, all from your Paystack Dashboard. This eliminates the operational burden of managing multiple physical POS devices, while significantly cutting your costs.”
This innovative payment solution was initially launched in Nigeria back in 2021 and has been instrumental in assisting businesses such as retail outlets, eateries, and pay-on-delivery services to efficiently handle in-person payments on a large scale without the need for any additional hardware investments.
The Virtual Terminal not only brings the convenience of Paystack’s online payment experience to brick-and-mortar locations but also provides real-time notifications of payments, keeping merchants informed of every transaction as it happens. This development is a significant step forward in modernizing the payment infrastructure and enhancing the overall customer experience across the African continent.
The Paystack Virtual Terminal is a comprehensive solution that integrates the full suite of benefits associated with the Paystack ecosystem. This includes the ability to accept international payments, facilitate split payments, streamline end-of-day accounting, and monitor payment activities directly from a mobile device.
Designed to cater to the specific needs of each country, the Virtual Terminal provides a single QR code that customers can scan to access a selection of payment methods tailored to their local preferences. In Côte d’Ivoire, for instance, the payment options available through the Virtual Terminal include popular services like MTN MoMo, Wave, Orange Money, as well as global payment networks such as Visa, Mastercard, and Apple Pay.
Similarly, in Ghana, customers can make payments using MTN MoMo, Telecel Cash (formerly known as Vodafone Cash), AirtelTigo Money, Visa, Mastercard, and Apple Pay. This ensures that a wide range of payment preferences are accommodated, making transactions convenient for customers.
In Kenya, the Virtual Terminal supports M-PESA, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Apple Pay, reflecting the country’s diverse payment ecosystem. South African customers, on the other hand, can choose from Scan to Pay, SnapScan, EFT, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Apple Pay, providing a comprehensive array of payment methods.
Paystack, which is now a part of the Stripe family, has been making strategic moves to enhance its operational capabilities. In April 2022, the company discreetly secured a switching and processing license from the Central Bank of Nigeria. This significant milestone allows Paystack to directly manage the routing of financial transactions between different financial institutions, positioning the company as a pivotal player in the region’s fintech landscape.
