No one likes to have to pay to get paid. Billers pay 1 - 3% of the transaction value to accept debit and credit cards. ACH is cheaper, but takes time to settle so there’s a risk that the goods will be provided before it’s discovered there are insufficient funds.
Billers who enable QR Code payments can unlock lower cost instant payment rails and offer a speedier, more convenient, and secure consumer experience.
Merchant-Presented QR Codes
Technically, there are two types of QR Codes that can be used for payments: Merchant-Presented and Consumer-Presented. This post will focus on Merchant-Presented where a Biller presents a QR Code for a consumer to scan and pay. Consumer-Presented will be addressed in a future post.
Requirements
QR Code Payment Configuration
One of the key benefits of QR Code payments is the amount of information that can be included in the payment transaction details. Billers can work with their FI/Trusted 3rd Party to configure the data they’d like to include alongside the transaction details. For example, a utility company may want to know if a consumer making a QR Code payment has a Smart Meter or an Electric Vehicle. These and other fields of information can be captured when a QR Code is scanned and paid.
Billers can also work with their FI/Trusted 3rd Party to decide on the payment method for processing.
Late fees and discounts can also be configured.
Two other items to be configured include the QR Code expiration and Biller alias.
The Biller Experience
Once configured for Biller acceptance, QR Code payments happen in seconds with the processing done behind the scenes by the Biller’s FI or Trusted 3rd Party.
Easy Reconciliation
The transaction data stored in a database at the FI/Trusted 3rd Party can be invaluable for reconciliation and analysis by the Biller.
Why it matters
Any Biller who wants to lower their payment acceptance costs, and provide a convenient, fast and secure payment experience for consumers can leverage QR Code payments.
QR Code payments are especially popular with Billers who want to convert check payments to digital, have a large number of customers who have a financial account at the same FI (so they can process on-us transactions), or those who cater to an “under 40” crowd.
For more information, please visit www.matera.com.
By Sarah Hoisington (Sarah.Hoisington@Matera.com)
Sarah Hoisington is VP of Strategy & Marketing of Matera, U.S. Founded over 30 years ago in Brazil, Matera is a technology company that provides instant payments, QR code payments and digital ledger technology to financial institutions. Matera’s solutions are used by 2 out of the top 3 global banks, 3 of the top 10 U.S. banks and 1/3rd of all banks in Brazil. Over 300 million Pix instant payments are processed per month using Matera’s solution and 60 million of those are initiated by QR Codes. Sarah has specialized in payments and fraud for over 20 years and is currently focused on Matera’s global expansion to the U.S.