South African taxis pilot fare payments acceptance on standard smartphones

Visa has introduced a new service in Cape Town, South Africa, that allows minibus-taxi drivers to accept contactless payments from passengers using their smartphones and Visa’s Tap to Phone software point of sale (softPOS) solution.

The service enables passengers to pay their fares by tapping a driver’s smartphone with their contactless payment card or mobile device, making the payment process faster, safer and more convenient. The service also helps drivers to reduce cash handling and increase digital inclusion.

The pilot of the Tap to Phone solution will start with 70 digitally enabled taxis on the Mitchells Plain to Bellville route, with plans to roll out the solution to additional routes in Cape Town and across South Africa. Visa has previously launched a similar service for taxi drivers in Hong Kong in 2022.