The news: 

• Wema Bank, the financial institution behind Africa’s digital bank Alat, has launched AlatPay, an instant digital payment solution designed to enable businesses of all sizes to digitise their operations. 
• The new solution, unveiled on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at Four Points by Sheraton in Lagos, will allow Nigerian merchants and business owners to process transactions worldwide.  
• According to the bank, AlatPay is an offshoot of its digital app, Alat, and it further demonstrates its commitment to innovation and driving business efficiency.

Among other features, AlatPay is a comprehensive payment solution that promises secure transactions, instant payment, and customisable storefronts. 

On AlatPay, businesses are to choose their preferred payment channels — cards or bank transfers — and fill in their account details to receive payments. 

Following information approval by the bank, users get access to AlatPay APIs to start receiving payments. Also, they can create and customise their storefront on the AlatPay portal. 

Tunde Mabawonku, the Executive Director of Retail and Digital Business at Wema Bank, noted that the payment space is transitioning and  “the future of cards is cardless.”

Mabawonku added that cards will become tap-and-go cardless tokens in the next few years, a future that he explained that Wema Bank is proud to play a major role in through AlatPay.

According to him, AlatPay will position Nigerian merchants and small businesses to acquire transactions worldwide. 

In the last few years, Wema Bank said it discovered that small businesses faced difficulty acquiring transactions, which has historically led them to require customers to make transfers or pay cash. This problem, Mabawonku assures, AlatPay now solves.

Additionally, merchants and small businesses using AlatPay no longer have to disclose personal financial details due to the new payment solution. 

A recent Stripe report showed that more than 70% of businesses face online payment challenges, which lead to various business delays and missed opportunities. 

As financial transactions evolve globally and seamless payment solutions become paramount to business sustainability, Wema Bank expects AlatPay to equip small businesses to compete effectively. 

“We have been in the industry for 79 years and one of the things we have done to remain competitive is by launching innovative products. So what Alat and AlatPay are doing is to provide platforms to make solutions, to make payments and acquisitions better,”  Mabawonku concluded.