HBL partners with VISA to introduce mPOS services to provide on-site card transactions

KARACHI: HBL, in its mission to expand the digital ecosystem in the country, has recently introduced mobile Point-of-Sales (mPOS), in partnership with VISA. With this launch, HBL becomes the first bank in Pakistan to provide on-site card transactions without the need of a physical POS machine.

HBL signed the agreement in April 2021 to introduce mPOS to Pakistan, and the solution is now available in the market for adoption by courier services and e-commerce businesses. Pakistan’s leading retail and e-commerce merchants, have already signed-up for the product, thereby empowering their customers with an additional channel for payment.

Earlier, online purchases could only be paid for at the checkout or through cash on delivery. With the introduction of mPOS, HBL has embarked on a new payment journey, that will revolutionize the digital payment landscape of Pakistan.

Only a few e-commerce merchants give their clients the option to pay with card on delivery. This is because POS machines are expensive, heavy, and mostly immobile.

HBL’s mPOS brings the POS machine into the rider’s smartphone by simply downloading an app. Clients who shop online can now make their payments at the time of delivery via using their Visa / Mastercard debit or credit card. As an alternate to ‘Cash on Delivery’, HBL mPOS also enables customers to make a payment after receiving the goods, and to avail all card-related points and promotions. This new technology has the potential to become the industry standard over the next few years, thus, reshaping the e-commerce industry in Pakistan.

Commenting on the partnership, Abrar Mir, Chief Innovation and Financial Inclusion Officer said, “HBL prides itself in empowering its clients by increasing their choices while accelerating the digitalization of the Pakistani economy. Our collaboration with VISA will directly benefit online shoppers, enabling them with a convenient payment solution. We believe that this partnership will further our digital growth, open new e-commerce avenues for both merchants and clients and foster financial inclusion in Pakistan.”

Kamil Khan, Visa’s Country Manager for Pakistan, said, “Smartphone penetration in Pakistan is tremendous, but there is still a large gap between the different payment options available to consumers for online and in-store purchases. Our partnership with HBL to launch the first mPOS solution in Pakistan aims to bridge this gap by enabling merchants of all sizes - whether large or mid-sized retailers, small stores or street vendors - to offer digital payments to consumers when purchasing goods and services.

Moreover, this is a great opportunity for merchants to convert Cash-on-Delivery clients and combat last mile challenges and ultimately pave the way for more sales growth and revenue. This is another milestone in Pakistan’s journey to build a vibrant digital payments ecosystem, strengthen the eCommerce market and transition to a cashless economy.”

HBL is driven towards expanding secure and safe payment options available to e-commerce clients while ensuring economic growth via digitalization. The partnership between HBL and VISA for mPOS will prove to be another groundbreaking milestone to strengthen the e-commerce industry of the country. We encourage courier services and ecommerce businesses which use riders to deliver products and receive payments to sign up for this facility and start scaling their businesses immediately.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022