By Nume Ekeghe
In the bid to facilitate payments between SMEs and their retail customers, Access bank Plc has unveiled SWIFTPAY.
The solution is a digital payment service that facilitates the receipt of business payments by enabling customers make quick, easy and secure digital payments on social media platforms to merchants.
The Group, Head, Emerging Businesses, Access Bank Plc, Ms. Ayodele Olojede, in a statement made available to THISDAY noted that the lockdown experienced in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, resulted in less in-person interactions and less in-person payment options.
She revealed that statistics from a survey carried out post-lockdown showed that MSMEs were impacted by cash flow, revenue and sales, adding that the impact of the pandemic made more apparent the lack of infrastructure and access to digital resources for small businesses.
She stated: “Access Bank has introduced SWIFTPAY to support the digital transition and growth of SME businesses. This product is part of the bank’s commitment to support SMEs to meet their business objectives despite the times.
“The new service comes in form of a payment link that can be hosted on merchants’ social media pages and sent to anyone to pay and conclude business transactions.
“It is easy and takes less than five minutes for interested merchants to sign up as it is convenient and time saving for everyone.”
Ayodele also revealed that the bank was committed to providing very practical solutions that support the growth of small business in Nigeria.
She added: “SWIFTPAY is free and the processing charge is discounted up to 15 per cent to ensure merchants keep most of their earnings.
“In recent times, e-Commerce has been challenged with the rise in fraud on social media, we have ensured that every merchant registered on SWIFTPAY carries a ‘verified by access ‘stamp to authenticate the page giving customers confidence when they transact.”
