Square Competitor Scoops Major Deal With Bank

LONDON, October 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Mobile payment innovator mPowa has announced that it is working with First National Bank, the second largest bank in South Africa, to introduce a new mobile payment device to the bank's merchant services offering in the coming months. The announcement follows the conclusion of an agreement between the bank and mPowa, the first company to introduce this highly secure mobile credit card acceptance technology globally.

mPowa is already in talks with financial institutions and Telco's  in the US with a view to secure similar deals in North America. The company plans to develop a portfolio of multinational financial services companies and increase its footprint in other sectors such as telecoms and logistics.

mPowa works by using a free mobile phone app and a secure reader which connects to a smartphone or mobile device via Bluetooth. It enables companies and individuals to accept card payments from their customers on the go in a quick and convenient way. The mobile app is free to download on iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows and Blackberry devices and functions as the control centre that accepts the payment.

The agreement, the largest agreement ever made by a mobile POS provider, will involve First National Bank embedding the mPowa tools and software into FNB's own merchant services. It will enable them to tailor the look and identity of the card service whilst maintaining the sophisticated and patented functionality that mPowa offers.

Dan Wagner, Chairman and CEO of mPowa, said, "We're delighted to have signed this important deal with First National Bank. It will enable them to mobilise thousands of their business customers which in turn will allow them to be much more flexible in how they do business. In today's marketplace, nobody wants to be tied down to a fixed location.

Jacques Celliers, CEO of FNB Business Banking said, "We have recognised the need to support our merchants' desire for mobility and convenience. We will be looking to mPowa to provide us with a robust and secure mobile environment that will appeal to our demanding and techno savvy customers."

"The South African economy requires an entrepreneurial culture to be incubated and supported from all stakeholders.  Thousands of our small business clients are in the services industry and a fixed merchant device is not of much use to them.  This new technology promises to allow our customers to accept card payments anywhere, anytime.  It could mean the difference between success or failure for many of them," adds Celliers.

Dan Wagner concludes: "We have aggressive growth plans and are looking to rapidly increase takeup of our service, particularly in the US, as more companies capitalise on the business benefits that mPowa delivers. Already, we are fielding an extraordinary prospect list of bank and telecommunication partners around the world, all wishing to incorporate our unique technology and hardware into their offerings. Expect many more announcements in territories around the world such as the US, Africa and the UK that are similar in nature to this important landmark agreement with FNB."

About mPowa  (http://www.mpowa.com)

mPowa is a point of sale device that enables credit and debit card payments to be made on the go. It consists of a mobile phone app for iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows or Blackberry devices, and a card reader. This can be either a magnetic stripe reader (MSR) which can be plugged into the phone's headphone socket or a Chip & PIN device. It is the first service of its kind in the world.

mPowa was created by multi award-winning serial entrepreneur Dan Wagner. Dan set up mPowa as the mobile off-shoot of his ecommerce and web publishing platform,  Powa. Previously, he established Venda - the world's largest 'on demand' or SaaS ecommerce provider - and Locayta - sophisticated search and profiling technology - both are now global leaders in their fields.

For more information about mPowa, please contact Flame PR on +44(0)203-357-9740 or +44(0)7947541814 or email[email protected]

SOURCE mPowa