Informal retailers can now facilitate on a regular basis invoice funds immediately on present Shop2Shop card machines. The initiative, which is supported via a partnership with Pay@, turns neighbourhood companies into one-stop fee factors for the communities they serve.
The service is obtainable via the Shop2Shop merchandising utility and provides merchants entry to Pay@’s community of greater than 500 billers, together with municipalities, retailers and retailer accounts, via a single connection. Since launching on the finish of April 2026, Shop2Shop merchants have processed greater than 25,000 transactions value over R6-million, with a median transaction worth of R240.
“For a customer in a rural or township community, paying a bill has often meant a trip into town that costs time off work, wages and transport,” say the businesses. “The partnership removes the necessity for patrons to take the journey, as an alternative giving them the power to settle their accounts at any Shop2Shop dealer. It takes seconds – the client supplies the dealer with their reference quantity, which is entered into the terminal, the account fee is confirmed in actual time, and the client is supplied with a legitimate receipt.
“The model works for both banked and unbanked customers alike, as it doesn’t rely on a single preferred payment method. Customers can pay their bills in cash or by card as Shop2Shop and Pay@ don’t determine how a payment is made. The knock-on benefit is that the service makes it easier for customers to make their payments on time, reducing the risk of late payment fines or damaging their credit histories.”
For merchants, the service can enhance retailer visits and supply an extra supply of revenue. Customers who go to to pay payments can also purchase items or use different companies, whereas merchants earn fee on every transaction. The fee is calculated routinely and added to the dealer’s Shop2Shop pockets. No further {hardware} or upfront fee is required.
The service recorded greater than 11,000 transactions in May, the primary full month of operation, with out formal advertising and marketing. Transaction volumes elevated to 18,000 in June. Payments linked to cell phone financing and fibre companies accounted for a lot of the demand. PayPleasure and FoneYam, which each present system financing, have been among the many most ceaselessly used billers.
The subsequent digital steps
Pay@ and Shop2Shop plan so as to add payouts, money deposits and extra billers to the service. The corporations intend to broaden entry throughout extra communities and create further transaction-based revenue alternatives for merchants.
Annelene Dippenaar, Shop2Shop chief enterprise officer, says: “What we love about this solution is that it makes payments accessible to underserved communities. The local shop becomes a little business-in-a-box and a neighbourhood payment point. The trader earns a new income stream with no new machine and no cost, customers get formal services on their doorstep, and the money stays inside the community instead of leaving it.”
Lani van der Merwe, Pay@ fee community supervisor, says: “Pay@’s mission has always been to make payments as seamless, simple and accessible as possible. Partnering with Shop2Shop brings that to life. A customer no longer has to travel kilometres into town and lose time or wages just to pay a bill. The trader becomes a trusted hub for the community, and the growth we’ve seen, almost entirely on word of mouth, shows just how real that need is.”