In the Nigerian retail market, just like other emerging economies, cash remains king as a significant number of all retail transactions are paid for by cash. The World Bank estimates that over 50% of all retail payments globally are done in cash, and in emerging markets like Nigeria and Ghana, that number can rise to 90%.
Smaller FMCG merchants are the most affected by this cash-based retail economy, as it presents security risks and adds layers of inefficiency to their business operations. But cash isn’t just inconvenient; it is also costly. Handling cash reportedly costs merchants up to 15% of revenue, and there is also the hidden cost of being excluded from the formal financial sector – the inability to access much-needed financial services like insurance and credit facilities.
Digital payments can eliminate the inefficiencies caused by cash and help these merchants unlock significant growth, with reports showing that digital payments, when properly adopted and deployed, could represent a $4.2 trillion untapped growth opportunity across emerging markets. Unfortunately, most of the digital payment solutions available are not well implemented and do not hold a compelling enough value proposition for merchants to switch to and abandon cash.
RedPay™ by RedCloud is a purpose-built solution that addresses the challenges of cash-based retail economies and is specifically designed for micro-businesses in emerging markets. It’s a comprehensive digital payment solution that comes with financial tools that make the leap from a cash-reliant to a digital economy seamless and profitable. This is a huge advantage, as most digital payment solutions, with their transaction fees, are perceived by merchants as expensive and cumbersome.
RedPay™ integrates seamlessly with RedCloud’s Intelligent Open Commerce Platform™, so a merchant on the platform can order stock for their store from any distributor or brand via Red101™, the open marketplace, and pay instantly with RedPay™. This immediately eliminates the complexities and risks associated with cash payments and adds a secure and speedy later to procurement.
Beyond a payment tool, RedPay™ also offers FMCG merchants an opportunity to diversify their revenue streams and drive sales growth. With RedPay™, merchants can now offer digital services like utility bill payments, airtime top-ups, and mobile data purchases to their customers and earn a commission on every transaction, unlocking a new revenue stream for their business. Expanding their offerings to include digital services also increases footfall to the merchant’s store and offers an opportunity to upsell physical products and drive sales growth.
Merchants can easily fund their RedPay™ wallets via a bank transfer and receive their funds instantly. For merchants who are excluded from the formal financial sector and do not have a bank account, RedCloud has built the world’s largest local payment network with over 2 million cash-in points, so they can walk to the nearest cash-in agent, pay in cash and have their wallets credited instantly.
In line with RedCloud’s commitment to building an open and transparent commerce system, RedPay™ is completely FREE to use. There are no fees to fund the RedPay™ wallet, and all marketplace orders and digital service sales are free. In addition, merchants get the commissions on all digital services sales credited to their wallets instantly.
RedPay™ is more than just another payment app; it’s an integral part of an ecosystem designed to provide merchants with the tools they need to scale in the digital economy.
RedPay™ can be accessed in Nigeria under the DIGITAL menu on the Red101™ Combined App and is soon coming to the Red101™ web portal.
