In most parts of the country, businesses of all kinds, especially the small and medium-sized enterprises, have borne the brunt of the effects of COVID-19.
Liquidity has dried up, employees have either lost jobs or their salaries have been slashed, and entrepreneurs have either curtailed, or closed their businesses altogether – albeit temporarily.
Running a business during these troubling and stressful times can be challenging without the financial backbone to sail through.
While this is an unprecedented situation, it is important to ensure that businesses revert to their former state before the coronavirus crisis began. In a rapid-response effort to help businesses struggling with the effects of COVID-19, the Co-operative Bank of Kenya is offering support through an e-commerce solution that would enable businesses to receive card payments online.
Business owners with cashless solutions for customers would find this e-commerce solution handy, which is why Co-op Bank has invested heavily in this and other cashless solutions so you and your customers can enjoy several advantages.
For your customers, there is the convenience and safety of transacting at any time from any location in the world, using multiple card types, and multiple currencies including KSh, USD, GBP and Euro.
As a business owner, you would get quick flow of payments straight into your bank account while enjoying outstanding real-time processing speeds with average authorization response times usually less than two seconds.
It also offers unparalleled processing scalability and security, seamless integration options, real-time reporting, and support for additional fraud prevention solutions that ensure your money is secure in the account.
As a merchant, you can also receive payments from card holders from other banks, not just from Co-op bank card holders.
The bank has gone further to offer several other cashless solutions for merchants such as:
• Lipa na M-pesa till number: Co-op bank will give you a till number so that your customers can deposit money directly into your Co-op bank account.
• Lipa Na M-pesa paybill number: Using the paybill number 400200, your customers can send money straight into your Co-op bank account.
• MCo-op Cash: This is a mobile banking app that Co-op bank customers can use to transfer money from their accounts into the merchants account. They can also use the USSD *667# to do the same.
• POS/PDQ terminals: These ensure your customers do not handle paper money. Instead, they can use their cards to make payments, and the money will go straight into your business’ Co-op bank account. Keeping companies solvent is key to limiting economic damage while saving jobs.
If you are a business owner (merchant), and you would like to know more about the e-commerce solution or the other cashless options available for your business, get in touch with the Co-op Bank team for more information and assistance with any of these channels.
