Mobile Money

While all the banks have mobile phone apps to allow online banking, the CBA recently announced the launch of their new small business mobile app. It allows small business customers to write estimates and turn them into invoices on the spot. It has basic   analytics including daily transactions to help business owners track cash flow and includes BPay and electronic funds transfer as standard payment methods. The app works with the bank's new mobile payments terminal, Emmy which costs $30 a month and 1.5 per cent commission for amounts over $1500. Businesses can accept card payments such as tap and go, chip and PIN code.

Launching soon, ‘PayPal Here’ is a new mobile payment device designed for small businesses and casual sellers. It includes a small card reader which pairs with a dedicated mobile app via Bluetooth to create a portable and wireless point-of-sale terminal. It's designed to read credit cards with chip and PIN security as well as debit cards from VISA and MasterCard. Along with taking card payments, the system can also be used to generate invoices and log cash transactions. A small business owner simply downloads the ‘PayPal Here’ app on their smartphone, the mobile is used to input the cost of the sale and then the transaction is completed with the customer inserting their card into the reader and entering their PIN on the keypad. A small device like this could alleviate small businesses from the full set up cost of a larger point of sale terminal with obvious appeal for street vendors, market sellers and mobile businesses.

Set up involves a one-off charge of AU$139 for the card reader plus a percentage of fees charged to the merchant for each payment (1.95 per cent for credit card payments via the card reader, 2.4 per cent + 30c for invoicing and 2.9 per cent + 30c for credit cards keyed into the app without use of the card reader). Registration for the waiting list for the new product is available on PayPal's website.