PayPal's Zettle unit has introduced functionality that lets small businesses in the UK, Sweden and the Netherlands accept contactless payments in-person, directly on their Android devices with no additional hardware or fees.
Launched in 2011, Swedish outfit iZettle was a pioneer of the mPOS sector, enabling merchants to accept card payments through their phones and a physical dongle.
Bought by PayPal for over $2 billion, the company is now letting merchants ditch the hardware as it looks to take advantage of soaring contactless payments usage.
Nearly 70% of debit card transactions and over half of credit card transactions are now contactless. Meanwhile, since the raise of the contactless spend limit last October (from £45 to £100) the average contactless spend has increased by 29% per transaction to £15.30.
Tap to Pay with Zettle by PayPal lets merchants start accepting payments within minutes of signup, covering physical cards and digital wallets - like Apple Pay and Google Pay - on smartphones and connected watches.
Ben Ramsden, director, small businesses, PayPal UK, says: "With Tap to Pay, entrepreneurs can quickly and easily start selling in-person - whether in a pop-up shop, at a farmers’ market, in a physical retail space, or on the go - with no additional costs or hardware needed.”