A Payment Gateway Explained
A Payment gateway is a technology that businesses use to accept customers’ debit or credit card transactions. A payment gateway acts as an intermediary between a business website, customer wanting to buy a product or a service, and the banks, helping to securely transfer information to the banks. This secure connection is used by encrypting card payment data to verify the authenticity of a transaction and keeping sensitive information secure.
There are five main parties involved.
⦁ The merchant (A business selling a product or a service)
⦁ The customer (“Payer”)
⦁ The acquiring bank (Processes and settles payments on behalf of merchant)
⦁ The issuing bank (the bank which the customer banks with)
⦁ Payment Gateway / Payment Service Provider (Secure communication for payments between the above-mentioned parties)
Payment gateways make their money by charging a transaction fee and administrative fees for enabling the service to merchants. Payment gateway services are available to merchants through either of the following methods:
⦁ Direct Integration into a merchant’s website
⦁ Integration of a merchant’s website through 3rd party software’s or systems
⦁ Integration into a merchant’s mobile application
In South Africa, there are a handful of payment gateways whereby most of them are foreign owned. So the next time you buy an item online, on an app etc. know that the payment is powered by a payment gateway.
How the payment process works
Lets Whoosh!
Learn more about the Whoosh payment gateway
Whoosh is a company that was established to participate within the convergence of technology and payment solutions in South Africa. Whoosh has gained a reputation for producing innovative ideas around technology, use thereof, and payment facilitation.
Whoosh boasts an industry-compliant payment gateway to help facilitate merchant transactions on a web-portal and mobile application. The Whoosh payment platform processes the VISA, MasterCard and AMEX Card Networks all with a mandatory 3D Secure process i.e. Customer receiving an OTP in order to validate that they are making a purchase. Whoosh also provides merchants with customized digital solutions.
Whoosh was founded in 2014 after recognizing the need for mobile card readers in South Africa. After many iterations of the business model, Whoosh pivoted to a payment gateway where the company has gone to realise great success in offering a compelling solution to the South African digital economy.
Some Accolades
Whoosh is constantly striving to add value to the payments industry in South Africa through innovative solutions and services to customers.
⦁ Level 1 B-BBEE contributor
⦁ Member of Proudly South African
⦁ Whoosh is an Authorised System Operator of the Payments Association of South Africa (PASA
⦁ The Whoosh payment gateway is PCI(Payment Card Industry) Level 1 Compliant boasting the highest level of card security and fraud prevention.
Partnerships
Whoosh has partnered with Nedbank, one of South Africa’s largest banks, as its acquiring bank.
If you are someone who owns a business and is looking at going online, it is then imperative to know what a Payment Gateway does. A payment gateway should not only be an efficient system but also one that enables the merchant to focus on what the merchant does best: selling!
Whoosh and its team prides themselves on viewing customers as partners whose interest in growing we share other than offering a great service.
Let’s circle the rand together, Let’s Whoosh!
Sign up here if interested www.letswhoosh.com/sign-up