The Director, Africa for Unlimint, Trevor Goott, speaks about the underlying gaps that exist within the digital payments sector as it affects e-commerce in Nigeria and Africa, and how the company is tailoring solutions that drives competitive pricing to suit digital payment beneficiaries. Emma Okonji presents the excerpts:
As a global payments system provider with expansion plans into African markets, how will Unlimint change the narrative about the African payments system?
We are not looking to change the narrative in the African payments system. Rather we are looking to give more choices for the African merchants and customers when it comes to payment methods and payment products. Payments is an enabler of business and commerce, and if we can improve the payments offering by offering more competitive pricing, or additional payment methods, then we are enabling our merchants and their customers.
What will you say is the motivating factor for Unlimint to venture into the African market, having played big in other regions of the world?
There are three reasons for this. Firstly, our global merchants have been asking us for a payment solution in Africa. We are also receiving numerous inbound leads from across Africa, from entrepreneurs asking us if we can be their payment provider; and thirdly, I have been doing business across Africa for 20 years and have witnessed the growth and transformation on the continent. I am seeing many great tech companies springing up all over the continent, and they all need a way to be able to accept payments for their businesses – so there has never been a better time to enter Africa.
What are the new payments solutions that Unlimint will be introducing to the African market that will possibly grow the market much faster, and position it for expansion to global markets, which is a key driver for economic growth?
We have a long-term vision for Africa. We invest in the countries in which we operate and we integrate directly into every payment solution available, rather than going via a local payment gateway who already has these existing integrations.
This solution removes the middle-man cost and we pass the cost savings onto our merchants. More important though is the robust merchant dashboard our merchants have access to, which gives them unprecedented data analytics and insights into their business.
Our payment gateway enables our merchants to accept payments but our Merchant Dashboard allows them to grow their business, by giving them relevant management information, which allows them to make better and more informed business decisions.
Further, for global expansion, the single integration into Unlimint allows the Nigerian merchant to receive payment anywhere globally, and in their customers’ preferred payment method. For example, a dress maker in Port Harcourt has a customer in the Philippines, and this customer can pay using their “Dragonpay Credits from their Dragonpay Mobile Wallet” and through Unlimint our Port Harcourt dress maker will be settled in Naira the next day. This is something that would not have been possible just a few short years ago.
In Nigeria, the federal government has just introduced the e-Naira that is designed to make electronic payments much easier and safer. How will Unlimint key into this initiative by the time it rolls out its services in Nigeria?
The e-Naira initiative is the right way to go for the long term. It is forward thinking on the part of the federal government but it will take time for its adoption and it needs to be deployed correctly. It is also a step in the right direction for Nigeria in terms of improving cross-border African trade, if other countries adopt their own blockchain based coins or Central Bank Digital Currency (“CBDC”). Unlimint already accepts payments in cryptocurrency, on behalf of its merchants, in other countries. We are constantly aiming to be ready for tomorrow and are monitoring all evolving trends in the payments industry, and we saw the potential in this early on and were able to adapt our solution to offer crypto as a payment method when it was still early days. We therefore have extensive experience in dealing with digital coins, and can offer our merchants the ability to create an “on-ramp” from paper Naira to e-Naira. In the future, we can even consider going one step further and allow our merchants to accept payments in e-Naira or indeed make payments using e-Naira.
How will Unlimint address the issue of business scalability in the electronic payment space in Nigeria by the time it rolls out services in the country?
To scale a business in the electronic payment space you need two key things – Merchants and the technical ability to be able to process a large volume of transactions.For merchants, we are fortunate in that we already have a pipeline of merchants (both foreign and local) who want to use us in Nigeria. We are also in the process of hiring a Sales and Business Development team to join our Lagos office. As soon as we are authorised to roll out our services into Nigeria, we can start to scale our business.
For our technical ability, the number of transactions we can process per second is so high that we can scale up our business in Nigeria many times over, and not come close to reaching capacity. We can scale up tremendously in Nigeria.
Based on your expertise in e-Commerce and mobile payments, what kind of technology innovation should Nigerians expect from you that will enhance electronic payments and card processing?
In Europe, on top of our acquiring solution, we also offer our merchants, via a single API, a banking solution and card issuing one. In the future we would love to bring these products to the African market too, and in doing so, offer our merchants a 360-degree coverage for their financial needs.
E-commerce is an emerging business in Nigeria and Africa, how will your company tailor its solutions to suit beneficiaries on the African continent?
Unlimint products are built around our merchants and their needs. This means that on a case-by-case basis we can launch country-specific products and even go one level down and create a bespoke solution for a merchant. In 2022, we are planning on launching a great new product, which will help merchants in Nigeria and across Africa have better access to e-commerce and will truly disrupt the industry. I cannot say more about that now, but I look forward to sharing the product with you and your readers next year.
Nigeria is still regarded as a cash nation, where its citizens depend so much on cash for most of their transactions, despite different payment solutions that have been introduced through the cashless policy initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria. How can Unlimint change this current situation that negates the global cashless economy initiative?
Unlimint can facilitate this move to a cashless economy by allowing for the non-cash payment methods to be accepted. If we think about the e-Naira, which we spoke about above, which the CBN is introducing, globally, Unlimint accepts payment in CryptoCoins where it is allowed in certain countries, so we already have that technology enabled, and so could literally switch on e-Naira processing when the CBN rolls it out
The CBN is forward thinking in this regard, as the e-Naira has many positive benefits for Nigeria, and e-commerce in particular, and of course, facilitates a move to a cashless economy.
Despite the avalanche of payment solutions available in Nigeria, some Nigerians are still skeptical about online transactions because of the perceived security risks. How will Unlimint ensure a risk-free online financial transaction in the Nigerian market?
It is correct that there are still trust issues when it comes to online financial transactions. In my experience there are four areas where things can go wrong, and it is important to understand them and to see how Unlimint deals with them in order to protect our merchants and their customers. Fake Websites – customers order and pay for goods that never arrive. Fraudulent Transactions – customers being charged for something they did not buy. Customer Data Protection – customers perform a successful online transaction, but their data is stolen, and then fraudulent transactions are executed. Unsecure Technology – this is where a hacker can easily gain access to the technology behind the payments platform. Unlimint deals with these four areas in the following ways: Fake Websites – Unlimint performs a full physical Know Your Customers (KYC) on any new merchant we onboard. This includes for example a physical inspection of their business premises and the goods for sale and an analysis of past trading performance and trading history to check that the business is operational and trading.
Fraudulent Transactions – Every single transaction in Nigeria is protected by two Factory Authentication (2FA) – this is where a one time pin (OTP) is sent to the customers phone every time the perform a transaction, so that they can approve it. In addition, Unlimint has automated volume and velocity checking to pick up irregular, unusual, repeating or suspicious transactions. Customer Data Protection – The data that Unlimint process is highly encrypted using the strong encryption algorithms AES-256. This algorithm is the first and only publicly accessible cipher approved by the United States National Security Agency (“NSA”) for protecting top secret information. Unsecure Technology – The Unlimint Technology Stack is certified as safe by the Payment Card Industry Data Security (PCI-DSS) – a global standard which all payment gateways should have.
What safety tips could you proffer to card users that will make them remain safe always during online transactions?
Always use trusted websites – this is generally a website which has a small padlock image in the address bar. Be careful of websites that have special offers which seem too good to be true. If you are buying a new mobile phone, and it normally costs N10,000 and you see that phone on special for N2,000 – it could be a scam. In trying a website for the first time, speak to friends and family and ask if they have heard of that particular website. Never give your OTP to anybody and if an OTP is sent to your phone and you did not perform an online transaction, contact your bank to stop your card. Never send a photo of your card number or email the card details, if for example, you performed an online transaction, and the company then asked to verify your card that you used. If you do need to send some card details for a legitimate question, only ever send the last 4 digits of your card. Always check that the amount charged to your card agrees to what your check-out page value was.
Nigeria is keen about local content development. What initiatives will Unlimint undertake in Nigeria and Africa to demonstrate support for local content growth?
At Unlimint we invest locally in the countries in which we operate. We employ only local staff and operate as a local entity. It is in our interest to see the country grow and will participate where we are able to in local content. This could be things like sponsorship or other support.
Startups in Nigeria are in dire need of funds to expand business ideas. What are the investment plans of Unlimint towards startups’ growth in Nigeria?
This is a great question. I travel across the continent meeting with new businesses who are invariably technology companies needing a way to be able to accept payment methods for their goods or services.
These companies, from Kigali to Lusaka to Abuja, always have a great business model with great technology behind them, however they lack two key attributes, which can hinder their growth. They are – Business Mentorship and Funding. At Unlimint, we are always open to providing early-stage companies with both funding and business mentorship because the two go hand in hand.
Can you describe the global shift to online transaction since the spread of COVID-19 as a payment solutions company and do you see it being sustained among Nigerian and Africa shoppers?
The move to online has definitely accelerated due to COVID-19. I do see it being sustained among Nigerian and African shoppers. The reason is that people are creatures of habit and tend to resist change. COVID forced people to change their habits and move to online shopping when COVID curfews, social-distancing, and store closures came into effect.
The new habit of online shopping or increased online shopping has become the new normal and I do not see it changing. Customers are getting used to how the system and process works, and they are building trust in the process. It is also more convenient, leaving more free time for other things.
