Digital payments firm, Network International (NI) has been appointed to provide managed payment services to Vodacom's financial services business, Vodacom Financial, and Digital Lifestyle Services.
According to
a statement, the deal will see NI provide omni-channel digital payment
offerings, including card issuing and acquirer processing services, transaction switching capabilities, as well as
other value-added services.
Vodacom
Financial and Digital Lifestyle Services include three core focus areas:
payments, lending, and insurance.
The offering will enable merchants to
offer a range of payment devices and allow them to take payments in all
transaction modes.
“Vodacom Financial and Digital Lifestyle Services is
successfully providing financial services to a significant portion of
previously underbanked customers, transforming lives and communities across the
continent,” says
Carlo Ricci, co-regional MD, Southern Africa at Network International.
Network
International says it will continue to invest in the local and African markets.
In January, the company committed a
R500 million investment to deploy its cloud-based, integrated payment platform
for merchants, banks, fintech firms, and mobile network operators across SA’s
payments ecosystem.
The strategy,
notes the company, aligns with its vision of enabling commerce across SA’s most
under-penetrated payments market.
“Our payment-as-a-service offering gives African
banks, telcos, and retailers the confidence to radically transform their
operations, ensuring they remain competitive and sustainable,” comments Dr Reda Helal, group MD of
Processing Business, Africa at NI.