Pocit, a provider of cellphone payments solutions, recorded 126 000 cellphone payment transactions from its 90 000 registered users in the last six months, indicating the South African market is ready for the uptake of secure mobile payment services.
This is according to David Reynders, MD of Pocit. “Cellphone penetration is high and South Africans use their phones for many different things,” he continues. “South Africans are hungry for the convenience of secure, anytime, anywhere payments via their cellphones.”
Users don't want to be limited in terms of who they pay or accept payment from, and they won't want to save three or four different applications on their phones in order to get around this, he explains.
“The next few months are likely to see the introduction of new cellphone payment services - some home-grown and others based on international examples. Their success will depend largely on how well they understand the South African market with its unique characteristics,” advises Reynders.
The concept has proven popular, and most of the growth has been viral, with users enjoying the freedom of making anytime, anywhere payments and encouraging their friends, family, acquaintances and associates to try it, he opines.
Pocit's growth is a good measure of the progress being made by cellphone payments as a viable alternate to other, more traditional payment methods, concludes Reynders.
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