By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke
Online merchants and consumers alike expect online buying and selling to be easy, efficient, and safe. eCommerce transactions trigger automated processes that involve financial players: banks and fintechs. New technologies have already simplified and smoothed business-to-business and business-to-customer experiences with mobile payments and e-wallets.
As e-payment becomes popular, there are so many challenges in the Nigerian e-payment space which needs to be addressed. The onus is now on providers to provide peer-to-peer payments beyond traditional banking models and to facilitate a cashless society that can enable any purchase seamlessly. Below is a list of some of the challenges in online payments in Nigeria and how to overcome them.
Card data security
Customer and card data security is a top priority for any e-payment company. Any exposure or breach of data leads to crises. Preventing online payment security issues is a must for anyone doing business online. This is why banks and fintechs spend a huge chunk of their profit on securing their systems to prevent any data breach. Prevention is better than cure!
Multi-currency and payment methods
Global eCommerce means accepting a variety of payment methods and currencies. Electronic payments such as e-wallets, mobile payments, and credit/debit cards help online merchants compete in international markets by allowing their customers to pay in their native currencies. For merchants, multi-currency, cross-border transactions can require new bank accounts, new business entities, and new regulatory hurdles in each national market. Selecting a payment service provider with the necessary infrastructure already in place can provide effective, and immediate, solutions to those problems. A merchant can easily collect payment in one currency and credit the merchant account in its home currency.
Fraud and chargebacks
This is the number one challenge in the e-payment space in Nigeria. So, as e-commerce expands, opportunities for fraudulent misuse of payment networks and data theft grow right alongside. For this reason, customers are advised to use a secure e-payment platform to guarantee data safety and security. This is why Jumia, Nigeria’s no 1 shopping destination is the platform Nigerians can make their eCommerce purchases without any data compromise. The eCommerce platform payment gateway is secured and to reinforce this perception, it introduced Jumia Pay. Jumia Pay allows every shopper on the Jumia website to shop conveniently and make secure online payments. The site employs state of the art technology and procedures to protect customer’s online transactions. Chargebacks, in addition to being costly, can damage business reputation. While chargebacks do sometimes happen for legitimate reasons, the use of customer service practices based on know-your-customer principles, and merchant accessibility, can substantially reduce or eliminate chargebacks.
Technical integration Online payment systems run across hardware and software platforms. Credit card-affiliated payment processors, while more secure, can be expensive for online retailers. Added to the expense is the lack of interface between processing systems—it may be difficult or impossible for some fintechs to link with other systems, resulting in processing and payment delays, lost transactions, and expensive fees. In true real-time processing, a combination of features, including integrated systems and gateways, addresses liquidity issues minimises delays while preserving online transaction integrity.
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