WorldPay has secured a deal which will see British department store chain John Lewis sell its new Mpos chip and PIN device.
Following several months of testing with around 3000 small businesses, payment processor WorldPay is now readying its Zinc service for commercial launch, taking on the likes of iZettle, Payleven and PayPal Here.
Merchants can download the free iOS and Android apps and buy the companion chip and PIN reader online or in John Lewis stores for £59.99. Like its rivals, WorldPay then takes a 2.75% cut of transactions.
Extra features include refunds, payment over the phone, text, e-mail or print receipts and real-time access to full payment history.
WorldPay says that a survey it commissioned suggests that 87% of consumers are likely to spend more money per transaction when paying with a debit or credit card, as opposed to cash.
Meanwhile, one in five UK consumers has had to abandon a purchase due to a small business or sole trader not accepting card payments or because they were not carrying enough cash to make a payment.
Geraldine Wilson, MD, WorldPay Zinc, says: "As consumers, we've all been in that awkward situation where you haven't got enough cash on you to pay for something and card payment isn't accepted. It's embarrassing and frustrating."
Yesterday, Lloyds became the first UK bank to muscle in on the Mpos market, inking a deal with Monitise to hawk the vendor's card acceptance technology to small business customers.