New PayPal portable card reader for retail transactions

PayPal Australia has unveiled a portable chip and PIN card reader designed to give businesses greater flexibility when processing payments, allowing them to be more mobile.

PayPal Here is a payment system which uses an app and Bluetooth device to easily accept debit or credit card payments.

Handy for businesses operating on the road, market stalls and from homes, it is an evolution of the first PayPal Here, launched in March 2012. The addition of the card reader turns a smartphone into a complete payment solution.

Firstly the sale price is entered into the PayPal Here app, the customer inserts their card and enters their PIN into the card reader which connects to the app via Bluetooth. The app tells vendor the payment has been processed and the transaction is complete.

The secure, chip and PIN credit card reader has been specifically designed for Australia. It will soon be mandatory for all ATMs, cards and payment terminals to have chip and PIN technology, when signatures will no longer be used for credit card transactions.

“With our long heritage as a trusted brand in Australia, we have been providing innovative technology solutions for businesses of all sizes for over a decade. With PayPal Here we’re proud to offer small businesses a solution that helps them take advantage of every sales opportunity, enabling secure payments online, on mobile and in-store, wherever or whenever they do business,” said Andrew Rechtman, senior director of SMB, retail and strategy at PayPal Australia.

Australians are becoming more and more likely to use cards over cash for low-value transactions, with data from the Reserve Bank of Australia showing that the average value of card transactions has continued to fall.

The card reader will be available for RRP $139 and each credit card payment will incur a fee of 1.95 per cent. Invoicing will cost 30 cents plus 2.4 per cent, and payments using credit cards keyed into the app, rather than using the card reader, will cost 30 cents plus 2.9 per cent.

Businesses can register their interest to receive the PayPal Here device at www.paypal.com.au/here and the device will be generally available later in 2014.

This article first appeared in RetailBiz.com.au

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