Payment technology over the years has completely transformed the way retailers operate.
Thirty years ago, most retailers in Africa did not accept credit cards, and mobile money was still an idea.
Over the past decade and a half, mobile money has transformed the way African consumers access and use their money to pay for goods and services.
But the most significant change in the use of digital payments occurred in the last year, where the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated digitization for the retail sector.
Unfortunately, retail businesses in major urban areas that weren’t equipped to handle card or mobile payments encountered a challenge in surviving the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Zambia, where various mobile money players are fighting for market share, merchants and retailers have established fragmented payment processes, contracts and accounts to accept all forms of payment.
In turn, this means that the retailer is managing different user payment experiences to collect from multiple mobile money networks and settlement and reversal processes on a daily basis.
Cellulant, a pan-African payments company, is addressing this fragmentation in payment processing for retailers by implementing Tingg, a digital payments platform that enables Zambian companies to accept payments from their customers seamlessly.
“Currently, approximately 50% of retail customers request to pay for their purchases using digital payment options.
“Therefore, for all companies, small, medium and large, the digitization of their payments has gone from being a good to having to a game changer in what has become the new norm.
“However, this demand presents several challenges for most merchants that are not always compatible with the customer’s preferred payment method, resulting in merchants having to enable multiple solutions to support multiple wallets.
“We want to partner with these companies and make it easier for them to accept payments conveniently and affordably with fewer hurdles, ”says Gilbert Lungu, Country Manager, Cellulant Zambia.
A single integrated solution, Tingg offers simplified payment processes and tools for a merchant to manage their payments.
As a result, companies can allow their customers to make payments for goods and services using locally relevant payment options.
“By implementing this digital payments platform, we are slowly eliminating dependence on cash and POS terminals.
“Retailers can accept as many payment methods as possible while simplifying the collection and settlement processes.
“For retail customers, the solution provides a standard, unified payment experience regardless of payment method, ”adds Mr. Lungu.
More than 70% of companies in Africa are small or medium-sized companies and they continue to be the backbone of economic growth in many other countries in Africa.
However, 90% of these companies collect payments in cash and lack digital payment options that suit their customers.
Cellulant aims to leverage its digital payments platform to drive growth in the retail sector by making it easier for companies to accept payments conveniently and affordably and address the complex needs of payment management.
