Online payments firm Paytm, run by One97 Communications Pvt. Ltd. is supposedly planning to soon introduce offline physical point-of-sales (PoS) terminal for its merchant customers. After QR code feature, Paytm is now enabling cards payments at merchant locations.
According to the reports, it is being anticipated that will bring in two types of PoS terminals :
– Traditional PoS terminals, which work on GPS or landline.
– Mobile PoS terminals, which mostly work through a smartphone.
“The idea is to offer users all forms of digital payments. What Paytm is doing through UPI encouraging bank-to-bank transfers, this is something similar to where they are entering into all forms of digital payments through PoS,” the report stated. “Paytm already has QR payment facilities, but in locations where people prefer card payments, it will deploy card-reading devices. But QR codes will remain the zero cost method for the merchant,” the report added.
Point-of-sale (PoS) system enables merchant transactions through credit and debit cards, where the POS component interacts with the card component and obtains necessary credit card information to complete the transaction.
Earlier, Paytm’s online POS feature was limited to those merchants who had a smartphone, a working Internet connection and the Paytm app. But now, with the offline PoS system, it may reach even those merchant that cannot regularly use the internet.
So basically Paytm is taking all the possible steps to reach each and every corner of the country and assist people in making payments easily. Paytm already had QR code feature and now, with the introduction of PoS, it is sure to help many merchants to accept card payments easily.
With the launch of the offline Paytm PoS system, the company will be directly competing with major banks as well as merchant customers in the PoS business like HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India. The increasing need for digital payment in the country and Paytm’s idea to introduce the offline PoS is definite to go hand in hand and help the economy to grow.