The Race To Annihilate COD: MENA E-Commerce OverviewAs e-commerce grows in the MENA, so does the urgency to retire the inefficient cash on delivery (COD) payment method.
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As e-commerce grows in the MENA, so does the urgency to retire the inefficient cash on delivery (COD) payment method. We highlight the leaders of the region's e-commerce industry, and how they've been trying to make it to the top.
PayPal MENA
PayPal and its popular digital wallet is making headway across the Middle East, and the folks atPayPal MENAhave been keeping an eye out on growing e-commerce markets, particulary in the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. With PayPal being popular internationally, andPayPal MENApalling up with Qatar National Bank and Aramex, we can safely assume that consumers in the GCC will be setting up their digital wallets very soon. Watch for the continued rise ofm-commercein the Middle East- PayPal MENA is on the ball there as well. PayPal put out their own one-touch payment system in August 2013.
PayFort
PayFortis optimistic that their payment solution will sweep the Middle East, given the fact they take into consideration the lack of credit card ownership in various markets, notably high-populace Egypt. Options like PAYatHOME and PAYatSTORE hope to allow merchants to expand its consumer-base by selling online without a credit card. PayFort hopes to make this happen using alternatives, notably vouchers that are sent via e-mail or SMS. The online payment platform's focus on the region means that their payment solutions will benefit different markets of the region, whether we're talking about Cairo or Dubai. Credit card ownership regionally isn't high as yet, so we predict that PayFort's services will also be successful outside the GCC.
Telr
Telr's vision goes beyond MENA. Co-founder Elias Ghanem, who has work experience with PayPal MENA, PayPal South East Asia and India, and Visa Inc, has established a Telr hub in Singapore, in addition to one in Dubai. The end goal? An efficient payment gateway that is not only multi-lingual but also multi-currency, all while sustaining good cash flow. Ghanem's ideal alternative to COD transcends borders, hence including South East Asia and certain emerging markets in Africa are in Telr's scope. Telr has a lot on their plate, but Ghanem and co. are confident that they'll make a positive impact. The company recently announced Series A funding from iMENA and Hatcher, investing from the Middle East and Singapore.
PayTabs
Funded by Saudi Aramco's Wa'ed program,PayTabs那一项也为该地区的参选e online payments solution. While founder Abdulaziz Aljouf boasts about theireCommerceAPI,可以很容易地集成在任何的一个插件website, there's more to PayTabs than that. A second feature: PayPage caters to merchants who set up shop on their social media pages; Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Flickr included.
White Payments
Co-founder Yazin Al-Irhayim was driven to developWhite Paymentsthrough the flaws of other online payment solutions in the region, particularly the inefficiency and delays. Rather than wait for weeks to be fully integrated into a certain online payment system, it only takes five minutes with White. Perhaps it's best to go back to the basics, and focus on building an even sturdier foundation. That said, we'll have to wait and see, given that White Payments is still in its BETA stage, but you might bump into them on Twitter and other social media platforms grilling their competitors.
