Digital start-up 6DOT50 launches digital platform to help customers pay for essentials without using cash
6DOT50, a financial start-up which focuses on financial inclusion of the unbanked and underbanked customers in emerging markets launched a service that will allow South Africans to use digital rands to pay for essential items.
According to 6DOT50, there are over 11 million South Africans who do not have a bank account and, during the lockdown, receiving wages is challenging.
It says many businesses have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and employees have been laid off and people are running out of cash and hunger is now a more immediate threat than the virus.
“These unprecedented times demand agile, relevant and collaborative responses to addressing the needs of South Africa’s poor and vulnerable. With robust, well-tested technology in place and with the support of South Africa’s best known and most trusted retail brands, we believe that digital rands will meet the critical need for a new way to pay in South Africa, during COVID-19 and beyond,” says Warren Venter, director of 6DOT50.
The company says a standard architecture design has been applied across its platforms that “allows for easy maintenance, distributed cloud architecture, consistent performance and the ability to scale easily as new requirements surface”.
“The platform is hosted on Microsoft Azure and managed by Cyberlogic. The core platforms have been deployed and used by large insurance organisations, with various components still used under licence to assist with managing cross-border money remittance services. Users can access 6DOT50’s solution via responsive Web, with Android and iOS native applications to follow soon.”
Another advantage to using the platform is that it reduces the physical exchange of currency and, with it, the risk of contagion caused by the coronavirus.
How does it work:
1. People needing help to pay for essential goods and food can join 6DOT50 for free.
2. To open an account, all you need is a mobile number, log onto their website and then upload a photo of their identity document or passport to qualify immediately for assistance.
3. Digital rands can be bought by logging onto the website, getting a quote and making payment − either by using a bank card online, or by using cash at major retail store outlets, including Pick n Pay, Checkers, Shoprite, Makro, Boxer, Spar, Usave, Game and through thousands of Flash traders.
4. People wanting to help those in need can buy Digital Rands and either send them directly to any 6DOT50 member to use or contribute them to the 6DOT50 Covid-19 Account.
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Written by: Staff Writer.
Guzzle Media
