What is Absa Pay?
Absa has launched their direct API, Absa Pay, enabling customers to make payments to merchants directly from their Absa account. Stitch has partnered with Absa to offer Absa Pay to our merchants as part of our Pay by bank offering, alongside all other bank APIs: Capitec Pay and Nedbank Direct EFT.
What is Absa Pay?
Absa Pay is a direct bank API that leverages open banking technology to allow patrons of Absa to make a seamless and secure payment directly from their bank account, without the need to enter their banking details.
Pay by bank has been growing in popularity as a digital payment method in South Africa for some time now. In fact, our recent e-commerce survey found that Pay by bank is the second most popular payment method for online shopping, preferred by 44% of people, and surpassed only by card payments.
How does Absa Pay work?
When a customer chooses the “Absa Pay” option on an online checkout, they must enter their registered ID and will be automatically directed to their Absa banking app to authorise the transaction.
They can then approve the payment within their banking app, which means their payment details are never shared and security levels are much higher. Stitch has partnered with the Absa team directly to offer Absa Pay to its merchants, and to ensure the highest levels of payments security, safety and anti-fraud protocols. This means customers’ funds and data are safe whenever they make an Absa online payment.
Why does Absa Pay matter?
Pay by bank and EFT transactions are significant for the South African market due to their inherent convenience.
Our research also indicated that security is a major concern for customers in the e-commerce and travel space, and beyond. One of the major hurdles new customers are looking to overcome when they decide where to shop, pay or store funds is the need for reassurance that their payment details and money are safe and secure, while they are protected from scams.
Absa Pay offers higher security. Absa has highlighted the bank-level security that users enjoy while paying using its API. By simplicity and convenience, Absa Pay stands the chance to encourage more Absa customers to engage in digital transactions and move into the digital economy, leading to greater access and reach, and more choice in how customers wish to pay.
How can merchants offer Absa Pay to their customers?
Existing Stitch clients can begin offering Absa Pay, alongside Capitec Pay, Nedbank Direct EFT and other digital payment methods, with no additional deep development work required. Most importantly, they also do not need to develop direct bank integrations. For new Stitch customers, Absa Pay can be combined with Pay by bank and other online payment methods through a single integration.
Interested in learning more about Pay by bank, Absa Pay and other bank APIs?
