With the global outbreak of Covid-19 and the necessary containment measures, use of digital payments has accelerated. In a drive to push for contactless systems, KCB Bank has officially launched a cashless payment service in partnership with Visa. The contactless-tap service, dubbed “Tap Hapo Sawa” , enables customers to enjoy a fast, easy and secure way to pay for goods and services.
All a customer needs to do is tap their Visa card on a KCB point of sale (POS) machine after which the transaction will be approved. Other than speed and convenience, contactless cards are safe because they use protocols similar to encoding, replacing sensitive and private information such as the 16-digit account numbers with a unique digital identifier. The EMV chip generates a one-time encryption code, and thus prevents fraud and counterfeiting attempts.
The feature is powered by Visa, which has put in place several resources to familiarize consumers with the security features provided by contactless payment technologies and e-commerce to keep them safe while paying with their cards.
Corine Mbiaketcha, Vice President and General Manager for Visa in Kenya, says that, “Across the globe we’re settling into a new normal, an immediate acceleration of digital shopping, which has dramatically changed the way we live, work and buy. It has impacted how we spend, send and use money, with a tsunami-like ripple effect on many parts of the global economy.”
Visa launched a consumer education campaign in Uganda, dubbed Sasuza Visa, that aims to eliminate the practice of surcharging, where merchants levy extra charges on payments made using debit or credit cards at a Point of Sale (POS).
In Uganda, Absa Bank Uganda recently unveiled the contactless tap functionality on its vertical Visa debit cards and POS machines. The institution stated that it had recorded a 40% increase in digital transactions between the start of the year to June 2020.
