Standard Bank, one of South Africa’s largest financial services group, has launched a service that allows small merchants to accept mobile payments by simply placing a QR code at their point of sale, with no POS terminal required.

EXCITED: Standard Bank’s Vuyo Mpako

Consumers can make payments using the SnapScan app at 10,000 merchants across the country, including Motherland in Johannesburg and The House of Machines in Cape Town.

The service is available to all consumers, regardless of whether they are Standard Bank customers or not, and transactions are free of charge.

Merchants sign up for the service online to receive a unique QR code that they can then print out and place at their point of sale.

Consumers need to download the app and register their details along with a nominated Visa or MasterCard. To make a payment, they scan the merchant’s unique QR code, enter the amount due and confirm the payment using their PIN number. The merchant then receives an SMS notification from Standard Bank to confirm the transaction is complete.

Merchants with a business bank account can have their SnapScan receipts paid directly into their bank, while small traders without an account can request a voucher that they can redeem at any Spar outlet or at a Standard Bank ATM.

“We are excited to bring such innovative solutions to all South Africans,” says Vuyo Mpako, Standard Bank’s head of innovation and channel design.

“We created this app together with Stellenbosch-based IT agency FireID in 2013; after extensive beta testing, we are ready to take this to market.

“It only made sense to give consumers access to their wallets in a safe and secure way on a device that basically never leaves their side.

“For small businesses, this is a real-time retail payment solution that allow business owners safe, secure and convenient payment methods for their customers. Having SnapScan also minimises potential loss due to the lack of a POS system, essentially creating another sales stream.

“South Africa has seen a proliferation of smartphones and an increase in apps available to the consumer. There are apps for almost everything from smart diaries to smart banking. A safe and convenient cashless mobile solution was imminent and Standard Bank found it in SnapScan.”