Movilway Expands Mobile Payment Services To The Underbanked In Latin America [Video]

Movilway, the company pioneering prepaid mobile payments in Central and South America, recently updated their arsenal of tools to include a new custom Android tablet Point Of Sale (POS) terminal as well as a new MoviPIN system for online purchases. Both systems — available at select locations — bring digital purchasing power to those without bank accounts or credit cards.

“It’s a common problem in rural and remote areas of the world, where many people simply do not have access to bank accounts,” said Movilway strategist Daniela Morgenstern. “How do you order and pay for online goods when you don’t have a credit card or a bank card?”

To solve this problem, Movilway created their mobile wallet system last year and this year have added the tablet POS terminal so that rural shopkeepers have more tools at their fingertips. The new tablet, custom built at Foxconn, allows shop keepers to manage inventory, manage Movilway account “top ups” as well as run other Android apps that may be useful.

In addition to the tablets, the MoviPIN system for pre-paid accounts lets customers purchase items online, buy digital content or games or even make purchases at participating vending machines (see the video below).

It works like this:

If you are in a remote section of the world and do not have a bank account or credit card but want to make an online purchase, you go to a participating Movilway location, create an account, deposit your money into the account (by giving cash to the clerk).

The clerk then enters the information into their Movilway tablet (or wallet device, complete with a receipt printer) and then prints out a receipt with a customer’s MoviPIN number on it.

The customer can then enter that MoviPIN into payment screens at participating websites (along with authentication credentials) to enable purchase of goods.

There are similar systems in other parts of the world like M-Pesa or Obopay, but Movilway’s system seems to be addressing the more formal and traditional shopkeeper/customer scenario.

Check out other wrap-up posts from MWC, like Aurasma’s AR technology here and Total Immersion’s eCommerce-assisting AR concepts here.