Payment Gateways

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Pay with confidence E-commerce is on the rise as online security strengthens

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Farhana Chowdhury he world has seen immense technological advancements compared to just a decade ago, and global citizens are slowly but surely adapting to a digital trend. From a paperless society to a dependence on computers for record-keeping, the era accommodates a rather convenient lifestyle where almost ev-

Transact securely

erything can be accessed with the click of a button.

Online interactions have now become the norm. While some are hesitant, most residents have become accustomed to accessing a variety of services via the Inter-

net. These range from banking transactions and remittances to shopping over international websites and ordering e-books.

Financial institutions have stepped up to include online services through websites and apps

where it follows doubled security precautions to make sure the user is its genuine cardholder.

Convenience lies at the user’s fingertips, opening up a world of options and accessories. If a browser is interested in purchas-

ing items online, the process calls for a safe transfer of funds that would ensure amounts are transferred from the shopper’s account to the seller.

This is where payment gateways step in — a secure platform that al-

safely and easily.

PAYFORT builds trust between buyers and online sellers by enabling consumers to transact online using the payment options they prefer with complete security and peace of mind while supporting the most popular payment methods available globally. By eliminating the risks associated with online transactions for consumers, PAYFORT enables more companies to sell online while increasing sales opportunities by establishing consumer confidence for its guaranteed transactional security.

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lows these interactions to take place with assurance. The system processes a number of tasks in a matter of seconds before money is electronically transferred.

Payment gateways are essential in the modern world, where tasks are conducted across online platforms for convenience. The framework also screen orders and verifies entered details to detect fraud, whilst utilising the HTTPS protocol, present in front of all web addresses.

Payment gateways are essential in the modern world, where tasks are conducted across online platforms for convenience. The framework also screen orders and verifies entered details to detect fraud, whilst utilising the HTTPS protocol, present in front of all web addresses Users are advised to be wary of fake websites, and ensure that the HTTPS symbol is displayed wherever personal details, especially related to money, are required.

A recently held Prepaid Summit: Middle East in Dubai revealed that the GCC, notably the UAE, is ready to spearhead secure online shopping. However, fraud creeps up as one of the main obstacles that bar the growth of ecommerce in the region. Statistics show that due to this, about 46 per cent of consumers prefer to avoid entering their credit or debit card numbers online.

This concern in turn has given pre-paid cards a chance to shine in the market. Pre-paid cards feature a fixed amount added into its account by a user. This further protects the consumer’s identity and allows him to freely purchase items without worrying about theft or data exposure.

Currently, partnerships are underway to revolutionise shopping over the internet to create a confident dome where consumers can shop at ease.

Besides, the concept of mobile wallet is slowly trickling into the tech-savvy community, further adding to convenience. Consumers can easily use an application or card that allows integrated functions.

— farhana@khaleejtimes.com

Payment Gateway

khaleej times / ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

Making online shopping safe and secure The market for prepaid shopping cards is doubling year-on-year with Central Europe and MENA region representing two-thirds of the global volume

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he UAE, Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia feature among the world’s top emerging markets for global retail expansion, according to Alex Mifsud, Founder and CEO of Ixaris.

Mifsud addressed 150 delegates at the Prepaid Summit: Middle East in Dubai earlier in March, joining more than 20 leading executives to discuss the opportunities of the prepaid sector. The region’s fifth annual conference dedicated to the prepaid sector explored the development of mobile wallets, opportunities and threats, best practices and projects and customer service.

Initiating safe and secure online shopping The event saw the announcement of a major partnership, said to be a first, between Saudi Post and 3Omlti, which according to sideline discussions looks poised to re-revolutionise safe and secure online shopping in the Kingdom with similar developments expected to follow in the UAE and Middle East.

Recent Gulf-focussed surveys place card-related fraud as one of the main barriers of growth for ecommerce across the board, with 46 per cent of consumers not willing to use their credit or debit cards online.

The findings also confirmed that while many have access to eenabled devices they are ‘bankless’ — do not have a bank account or bankcards that are Internet enabled — and cannot shop online.

“This partnership sees prepaid cards and prepaid virtual accounts addressing actual consumer concerns by enabling them to shop safely without exposing bank, debit, credit or personal data when making payments online,” explained Khalid Al Holan, Founder and CEO of 3Omlti.

CEMEA To Double

Growth in MENA Bialek indicated that strong travel demand, online commerce and government programmes promoting financial literacy and inclusion are all real signs of market opportunity and growth.

“We expect prepaid to continue to enjoy strong double digit growth and outpace the growth of other payment products by converting cash transactions into prepaid card transactions.

“For the MENA region in particular, this growth can be attributed to the globalisation of the work force that has driven the use of prepaid remittance cards and increased spending power among youth, and in turn has driven the need for more convenient spending mechanisms that

Fastest projected growth Almost 400 million transactions were processed

by Network International in 2013

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he Middle East and Africa region is projected to post the fastest growth rate for payment cards during the next few years leading up to 2017, according to Abdulla Qassem, Chairman — Network International a leading payment solutions provider in the Middle East. Qassem shared the news at the recently held Network International’s 7th User Conference, which brought together financial institutions, the company’s merchant partners and retailers to discuss the developments in the payments sector.

“The Middle East and Africa markets are teeming with opportunities, and as the payment infrastructure becomes more developed, we believe the region will witness the fastest growth rate for charge, credit and debit cards across the 2012-2017 period,” said Qassem.

“As customers demand ingenious and convenient payment technologies that also offer the highest level of security, we believe the next level of innovation will be in the areas of mobile payments and e-commerce.”

Network International also took the opportunity to update its partners about the company’s achievements in 2013. Bhairav Trivedi, Chief Executive Officer, Network International, said, “In the last three years, we have doubled the volume of transactions processed, and have reached almost 400 million transactions in 2013,

Rosoom offers flexible payment options over multiple channels

He said that consumers would be able to purchase vouchers at their local post office and convert them online into prepaid cards acceptable by any Internet shopping site.

Meanwhile, Rich Bialek, Visa’s Senior Director, Prepaid, Central Europe Middle East and Africa, representing the event’s title sponsor, noted that the US is driven by government programmes and continue to represent at least two-thirds of the total global prepaid value, and that Central Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA), including MENA, is the fastest growing market presently doubling in volume, year-on-year.

“To date in CEMEA payroll programmes, gift and incentive cards have driven growth. Now programmes targeting travel and online commerce are on the increase, along with government programmes designed to promote financial literacy and financial inclusion,” he said.

amounting to Dh70 billion in volume. The high point was when we successfully completed over two million transactions in a single day, with several instances of over 100 transactions per second.

“The ever-increasing focus on customer centricity has meant that consumers are becoming empowered by the day, and payment models are constantly being tuned to the customer’s requirements by leveraging the latest technologies,” he added.

Trivedi pointed out that Network International had taken huge strides with regard to investing in next generation technologies including the launch of “Network One,” an innovative and market-leading platform developed in partnership with OpenWay. A first of its kind in the region, the new platform allows innovative products to be created, or value added services like loyalty programmes and mobile payments to be implemented by monitoring the behaviour and attributes of a payment.

The conference had witnessed participation from global dignitaries and business leaders.

Network International’s User Conference brings together financial institutions, public luminaries, business leaders, government utility providers and merchant partners of Network International, resulting in innovative thinking and exchange of ideas and best practices related to the payments sector.

Convenient mode

don’t require credit qualification,” he explained.

Echoing these sentiments Douglas Blakey, Group Editor Consumer Finance at leading business information provider Timetric Financial Services, said that regional and global demand

for new consumer experiences is driving the popularity of prepaid.

“Prepaid is a practical, transparent and cost-effective international payment gateway for both business and individuals, and the only way for the sector to go is up,” he concluded.

Rosoom is the electronic payment gateway developed by Dubai Trade to facilitate online payments and foster adoption of the 700-plus e-services on its portal. Since its launch in mid-2008, Rosoom has recorded over one million payment transactions and successfully processed more than Dh2.7 billion in the past six years. It serves as the sole online payment gateway for major entities such as DP World, JAFZA, TechnoPark, Dubai Auto Zone, Dubai Multi Commodities Centre, Jumeirah Lakes Towers and Palm District Cooling.

Rosoom supports multiple payment options including major credit cards, direct debit by linking to the online internet banking portals of major

banks, pre-paid instruments such as e-Dirham and Dubai Trade’s own Rosoom Wallet. This unique feature provides flexibility for the bill payments and allows the companies to offer the payment options that best suit their needs.

Built using the state-ofthe-art technologies and is hosted in world-class data centre in the UAE, it offers a rich set of back-office functionality including an automated three-way reconciliation module that allows for easy and pro-active exception management. Rosoom is compliant with the latest 3-D secure requirements which aim to reduce the fraudulent transactions and therefore give greater protection to the business entities connected to it.