DBS launches PayLah taxi QR code payment in Singapore
Those commuting via taxi in Singapore now have the option to pay using their smartphone's QR reader, through an initiative launched by DBS in partnership with ComfortDelGro Taxi.
Users of DBS PayLah -- the bank's mobile wallet -- can now make instant QR code payments in 16,000 ComfortDelGro taxis across the city-state, as the finance giant edges towards its goal of boasting 60,000 QR code payment acceptance points by the end of 2017.
"[Customers] are taking to cashless payment in increasing numbers, and are withdrawing lower amounts of cash and less frequently from our ATMs," said Jeremy Soo, head of the Consumer Banking Group in Singapore at DBS Bank.
"With the introduction of user-friendly digital payment modes such as the QR code for day-to-day activities such as taxi payments, we expect cashless payment adoption to accelerate."
According to DBS, contactless card transactions grew 82 percent from June 2016 to June 2017, while payment volumes rose by 76 percent.
In the same period, DBS said PayLah saw its transactions and payment volumes more than double, with a growth of 110 percent and 111 percent respectively.
Similarly, from 2012 to 2016, ComfortDelGro Taxi said it experienced cashless transactions on board its taxis increase by around 45 percent.
Paying taxi fares with DBS PayLah is instant and does not require the use of credit or debit cards; rather customers will be required to scan the QR code on the taxi's cashless payment terminal and the app will automatically process the payment.
DBS, in partnership with telecommunications giant Singtel, launched an initiative last month that offers further help to small and medium businesses to digitise their operations and explore ecommerce options to grow their presence.
The duo are hoping to list 5,000 SMBs on the 99% SME website, which was part of an annual campaign launched in 2015 to help such businesses expand their in-store and online business by listing and marketing offerings on the website for free.
The companies are also able to join an online marketplace in Singapore hosted by ecommerce player Lazada. In addition, DBS is offering a new suite of financing packages bundled with preferential pricing and fee waivers to help the SMBs adopt cashless and ecommerce services, as well as providing incentives to its customer base of 4 million to encourage them to make purchases from participating SMBs.