The program is meant to start there but is looking to expand throughout the rest of the region.
Among the most challenging goals for startups in the Arab region to start selling online is choosing the right online and mobile payments platform, leading to many attempts to improve the system.
There have been a number of efforts to try to create a successful gateway within that region.
A primary part of that effort was to try to simplify the types of services that are already available online and available for mobile payments. Even PayPal, the online giant, has expanded into the region recently, having added countries such as Morocco, Egypt, Yemen, and Tunisia.
Last month, McDonald’s made its entry into the mobile payments environment in Kuwait.
The hope was that it would be able to use mobile payments to make it easier for its customers to make purchases. To accomplish this, it used the SEQR solution, which is owned by the Swedish online company called Seamless. This program will lead to the gradual implementation of the system into all of the branches of McDonald’s throughout Kuwait and will be brought forward through a newly established partnership with the Kuwait International Bank, which will be responsible for handling the financial transactions of the system and collecting the funds.
According to the CEO, Peter Fredell, “Kuwait International Bank is our first partner in the region. However, we are currently looking to expand in many countries around the world, including other Middle Eastern countries.”
The restaurant locations that participate in the mobile payments program are issued NFC technology chips and QR code stickers for each of their products. Their customers can then download the free SEQR mobile app and then opt to pay for their purchases either through the scan of the barcode or waving the enabled device over the near field communication tag. A unique PIN from the cashier will allow the customer to confirm the transaction.
Other large companies are also stepping into mobile payments in the Middle East, including an American company called MOBIbucks, which just arrived last October. It is believed that if the market can be proved by Seamless, then others will rapidly follow.
