Bunq selects phos for softPOS trial to support retail merchants during busiest shopping period

 Phos, the fintech behind the first-ever software Point of Sale (POS), has today announced that it is working with Dutch neobank bunq to revolutionise the way its retail merchant customers accept payments.

phos enables users to receive payments directly on an NFC-enabled Android device. bunq will deploy the phos solution so that customers can replace physical POS terminals or cash with a software-based POS, via their phones or other Android devices.

bunq, which offers mobile banking services across 30 markets, will be supported by phos in its mission to provide its customers with next-generation banking solutions and immediate access from a mobile device.

The trial comes in response to increased consumer demand for cashless, mobile and contactless payment options during the coronavirus pandemic. During the initial phase of the scheme, bunq will offer this new feature to its retail merchant customers across its European markets, including Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

Brad Hyett, CEO of phos, said: “We’re excited to be working with bunq as we want to transform how retailers accept payments and manage their revenue and cash flow. By equipping businesses with the power of softPOS payment technology, they will be able to grow sales and unlock the full spending potential of their customer base – offering greater flexibility, convenience and more ways to pay.

“We’re confident that businesses trialling the new bunq functionality will reap the benefits of significantly increased returns as we head into the busiest shopping period for retailers and are looking forward to working with the team at bunq to take this solution to the wider reaches of their customer base in the near future.”

COVID-19 has accelerated the adoption of cashless technologies globally in 2020. With the use of cash rapidly declining, phos’ solution directly addresses this demand for alternative payment methods. Its technology is cheaper and simpler to use than other cashless solutions, which often require additional hardware or have long settlement times or high fees.

phos’ technology also allows merchants to instantly accept contactless payments on their own mobile devices without the need for additional hardware. This makes it easy and quick to set up and reduces costs for merchants compared with other digital payment solutions.

Ali Niknam, CEO of bunq, added: “We want to make sure contactless payments are a breeze in these difficult times. Our goal is to make life easy for bunqers, and this technology brings us a step further.”

If the trial is successful, phos’ technology will be fully incorporated into the bunq app for the use of its retail customers, with a view to the solution being rolled out across more markets and customer segments in the future. The project will rely on Paynetics, an e-money institution with licence across the European Union, as the acquiring bank.