OMA Emirates Group has announced their collaboration with UnionPay International to develop SoftPOS, a Point of Sale (POS) solution in the Middle East and Pakistan that will increase the acceptance of touch points significantly across these regions. The innovative SoftPOS solution will be very cost-effective and secure and transform NFC-enabled (Near Field Communication) smartphones into a POS, offering POS Acquirers in the region a much-needed economical solution in line with UnionPay’s strategy towards digitization.
Payment made through SoftPOS will be safe and secure, just as it would be through a physical POS terminal. With SoftPOS, contactless payment will be seamless for merchants and SMEs to adopt, allowing businesses to overcome issues with cash handling and other operational challenges that occur due to the exchange of physical currency/tender/money. SoftPOS can eliminate the requirement for in-store cash registers and enable business owners to use portable smart devices such as mobile phones and tablets as payment terminals for contactless payments. SoftPOS can also provide an improved customer experience along with new possibilities for the retail sector to utilize their human resources more flexibly.
Commenting on the partnership, Niranj Sangal, Group CEO of OMA Emirates Group said, “We are very excited to collaborate with UnionPay International in introducing SoftPOS to the Middle East and Pakistan region. We strongly believe this will be a game-changer, especially for SMEs looking for a respite from ever-increasing operational costs. We look forward to further strengthening our position across multiple regions by associating with UnionPay International and offering value-added products and services to our clients.”
The tap-to-phone solution will help consumers who have the NFC feature enabled accept payment digitally through contactless payments. This can be facilitated by tapping the NFC-enabled card or mobile device on the merchant’s Android mobile phone with NFC functionality.
“UnionPay International is pleased to partner with OMA Emirates Group in revolutionizing innovative payment methods in the region, and we believe that this solution will help Acquirers to scale their POS touchpoints. SoftPOS will enhance the experience for smaller merchants and make digital payment collections simple, reliable, and flexible where conventional POS isn’t feasible due to the high cost of hardware,” said James Yang, General Manager Middle East of UnionPay International. “We are confident that this new solution will allow new category merchants to accept contactless payments in an easy way as customers are moving to digital channels faster than they have in the past.”
