Indonesia’s largest financial institution, Bank Mandiri hasannounced that it will be rolling out an mPOS (mobile point-of-sale) to itsretail customers in a partnership deal with goSwiff and its local partnerIndopay. Customers with a smartphone or tablet (the device can work on both iOSand Android operating systems) can attach a small card reader and accept cardpayments on the go.
In addition to simply accepting the cards, the mPOS back-endsupport will also customers to decide whether they want their receipts to besent electronically via email or SMS in a move that is designed to be more environmentallyfriendly. Furthermore, the mPOS device can be designed for certain retailsegments. For example, for restaurants and cafes, waiters given mPOS devicescan service their customers personally at their table without the need for acustomer to queue at the checkout counter.
Commenting on the announcement, Frans Usthavia Rico, SeniorExecutive Vice President of Transaction Bankinga at Bank Mandiri said, “Theadvantage is that we offer mobile payments along with our existing POS solutionto the merchants. mPOS is equipped with functions to take service orders, toprovide inventory and to offer loyalty programs for the merchant’s loyalcustomers. mPOS solution can be integrated with existing POS already owned bythe merchant, hence offering a more complete solution to our clients.”
While to date the majority of mPOS providers have focused onmore developed markets in Europe, North America and select markets like Brazilin South America, a number of providers in Asia are rapidly generating momentumas the local marketplace evolves and consumers increasingly use electronicpayment instruments like debit cards for a greater share of their payments.While volume in these mPOS programs may not be as high as their Westerncounterparts in the immediate future, they arguably have significantly morepotential over the long run.
Overview by Tristan Hugo-Webb, Associate Director, International Advisory Service
