Carrying bank cards to make payments is a thing of the past as more people live in the digital age, and they want to tap as part of digital payments. Now, Google Wallets has entered South Africa to take the advantage of digital payment growth.
The new feature or technology makes it easy for users to save, easily and securely access their payment cards, loyalty cards and boarding passes on the go, right on their mobile phone.
Cardholders of partner banks that include FirstRand Bank, Discovery Bank, Investec, Standard Bank, ABSA and Nedbank can now add their details on the Google wallet, and make contactless payments using their android phones and Wear OS devices.
Alistair Mokoena, Google South Africa Country Director in a press statement said: “Access to technology is vital for economic prosperity as millions of people use their mobile devices daily to tap and pay at stores, pay for public transportation and to utilise a variety of passes. At Google, we have learned that great things happen when technology works for everyone. By including everyone – a dynamic ecosystem of manufacturers, developers and users – we want to make digital wallets accessible to everyone through fast, secure access to their everyday essentials.”
“Security and privacy are built into every part of Google Wallet, making payments safer and allowing people to transact seamlessly and with confidence throughout the day. This will allow users to make transactions using a virtual card number (a token).”
“We are very excited about the launch of Google Wallet in South Africa. We hope that people not only enjoy how easy it is to use, but also how secure it is for them to transact their business confidently,” adds Mokoena.
Google is following its rival’s lead, Apple Inc, with Apple Pay which it launched in South Africa a year ago.
