PayPal has announced its entrance into in-person payments through a partnership with Verifone.
Under the agreement, Verifone’s in-person payment technology will be integrated with PayPal’s enterprise payment processing and e-commerce platform, Braintree. This partnership aims to provide merchants with a seamless, scalable and flexible omnichannel payment solution.
“This partnership marks a major shift in how PayPal is approaching the omnichannel enterprise opportunity,” said Alex Chriss, President and CEO of PayPal.
“In collaboration with Verifone, we are unlocking a new path to mass adoption of in-person payments, which will allow us to scale quickly and bring the full power of PayPal to the global merchant community.”
Despite this being unknown territory for PayPal, it has ambitious global expansion plans. The company will launch its new venture in the US with upcoming rollouts in the UK and Germany.
PayPal is said to be targeting major retailers, grocery stores, quick-service restaurants, ticketing, entertainment, electronics and apparel merchants. These businesses will gain access to PayPal’s enterprise payment processing, which seeks to optimise authorisation rates, reduce costs, minimise fraud and drive conversion.
Merchants will also benefit from Verifone’s in-store payment solutions, which integrate with enterprise POS platforms and support a range of payment methods. Additionally, PayPal’s global reach and local expertise aim to ensure tailored merchant experiences backed by a strong international network.
Himanshu Patel, CEO of Verifone, stated: “By combining Verifone’s secure, robust in-person payment assets with PayPal’s industry leading e-commerce and processing capabilities, we can offer a unique solution that will meet the complex payment needs of enterprise merchants globally and offer a boundless commerce experience from the most trusted names in payments.”
A new venture
This omnichannel offering will be part of PayPal’s recently announced merchant platform, PayPal Open. Through PayPal Open, merchants of all sizes can access the entire PayPal ecosystem and integrate a full suite of commerce solutions.
As one of the most well-known brands in online payments, PayPal’s move into omnichannel commerce may come as a surprise. However, this expansion aligns with the growing demand for businesses to meet evolving consumer needs.
BNPL firm Klarna has also expanded its product for in-person use, achieving success despite regulatory concerns over consumer safety. Speaking to Payment Expert earlier this year, Francesco Simoneschi, Co-Founder and CEO of TrueLayer, said: “Expect to see a dogfight that brings long overdue innovation and pricing competition to consumers and merchants.”
With Mastercard and Visa dominating the payments space for decades, PayPal may see this as an opportunity to challenge the duopoly and claim a share of the market.
