South Africa’s First National Bank has entered into a deal with mPowa to offer its payment device in the country. This will involve FNB integrating mPowa’s hardware and software into its existing merchant services, with the bank’s own branding and look.

Like Square and iZettle, mPowa works by using a mobile phone app and a reader which connects to a smartphone or mobile device by plugging into its headphone socket or connecting via Bluetooth. This enables companies and individuals to accept card payments from their customers. The mobile app is free to download on iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows and Blackberry devices and functions as the control centre that accepts the payment.

The FNB contract is mPowa’s first announced deal. The company was founded by Dan Wagner, who also set up e-commerce provider Venda and Locayta, a search and profiling technology outfit. “We’re delighted to have signed this important deal with First National Bank. It will enable them to mobilise thousands of their business customers which in turn will allow them to be much more flexible in how they do business. In today’s marketplace, nobody wants to be tied down to a fixed location,” he says.

Jacques Celliers, CEO at FNB Business Banking, comments: “We have recognised the need to support our merchants’ desire for mobility and convenience. We will be looking to mPowa to provide us with a robust and secure mobile environment that will appeal to our demanding and techno savvy customers. The South African economy requires an entrepreneurial culture to be incubated and supported from all stakeholders. Thousands of our small business clients are in the services industry and a fixed merchant device is not of much use to them. This new technology promises to allow our customers to accept card payments anywhere, anytime. It could mean the difference between success or failure for many of them.”

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