Access Bank, Visa launch digital payment tool 'Visa Accept' to bring small merchants into formal economy

Access Bank Ghana and Visa have launched a virtual point-of-sale (POS) solution aimed at helping nano and small merchants accept digital payments without the need for a physical POS terminal.

The solution, Visa Accept, is integrated into the Access Bank mobile banking app and allows eligible business account holders to receive payments directly on their smartphones.

The initiative is also expected to generate transaction data that could help small businesses build financial records and improve their prospects of accessing formal credit.

Speaking at the launch in Accra on Friday, September 18, Eugene Ocansey, Executive Director for Retail and SME Banking at Access Bank Ghana PLC, said the solution was designed to help address the difficulty many small businesses face in transitioning from the informal to the formal economy.

“We know that the bulk of businesses in our SME space are informal. We talk about the fact that we need to bring everybody into the formal economy, and Visa Accept presents us an opportunity to start transitioning the bulk of our SMEs who are informal into the formal economy,” he said.

Mr Ocansey said the transaction records generated through the platform could also help banks better understand the financial activities of small businesses and assess their ability to repay loans.

“One of the reasons why access to credit is a barrier is that there is no way you can track what they do. Once you give them a tool that can bring their money, and everybody can see what they do, now we can afford to offer them credit,” he said.

Visa Accept allows merchants to receive payments through contactless card tapping, QR codes or payment links sent to customers.

Unlike traditional POS terminals, the system does not require merchants to acquire additional hardware.

Payments are processed through the merchant’s smartphone, with funds credited to the linked Access Bank account instantly after a successful transaction.

On his part, Fabrice Konan, Country Manager and Cluster Head for Visa Ghana, said the solution was intended to address situations where businesses lose sales because they cannot offer customers their preferred payment method.

“Every day, there is a client who is ready to buy, and there is a merchant who is ready to sell, but the sale doesn't happen because the merchant is not offering to the client the way he wants to pay. So there's a disconnect,” he said.

He said the technology could make digital payment acceptance more accessible to businesses that have traditionally been left out of the digital payments ecosystem.

“Together with Access, we are helping market traders, food vendors, shop owners, service providers and everyday entrepreneurs to participate fully in the dynamic digital economy,” Mr Konan said.

Visa said Ghana is the first market in its Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) region to launch Visa Accept, citing the opportunity to expand digital payment acceptance among small merchants.

To ensure the solution reaches the intended target, Access Bank and Visa plans to embark on a merchant education and onboarding activities to encourage adoption.