Ozow
Ozow, previously known as i-Pay,[1] is a fintech company based in South Africa.[2]
The company provides a variety of online payment services for South African businesses and consumers.[3]
History
[edit]Established in 2014, Ozow has headquarters in Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa.[4] It was co-founded by Thomas Pays,[5] Mitchan Adams,[6] and Lyle Eckstein.[7] Ozow has developed and currently operates an online automated Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) payment gateway[8] in South Africa.
Ozow is accessible to all who have an internet banking profile and allows for instant payments across all smart mobile and desktop devices.[9] On March 5, 2020, the company achieved a milestone of R10 billion in transactions processed.[10]
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the company experienced increased huge demand for their services as large numbers of South Africans turned to online purchases amidst widespread lockdowns.[11]
In November 2020, the company processed R1 billion in transactions in the month, including over Black Friday. The single biggest transaction processed was R500,000.[12]
Investments
[edit]Kalon Venture Partners invested in the company during early funding rounds of the business. In June 2019, Ozow raised follow-on funding from Kalon Venture Partners as part of a larger Series A round.[13]
In November 2021, the company announced a $48 million Series B funding round led by Tencent.[14] The investment round also included Endeavor Catalyst and Endeavor Harvest Fund. Notably, Endeavor Catalyst’s investment committee approval was chaired by Reid Hoffman, partner at Greycroft, and co-founder and former executive chairman of LinkedIn.[15]
Services
[edit]Ozow offers consumers card-free services whereby they are able to access their accounts using internet banking. Ozow uses a payment gateway to provide customers with payments. No registration is required and all customers need is an internet banking profile. Customers who pay through Ozow only pay the merchant. There are no other fees.[16]
There are no charge backs on payments. Merchants receive payments directly from the customer's bank or credit accounts. Credit cards are not needed. Merchants also receive notifications of transactions.[17]
The company offers online businesses, NGO's and non-profit organisations that process under R1 million in monthly transactions zero processing fees for 12 months.[18]
In September 2020 the company released Ozapp, a web application that enables customers with a bank account or digital wallet facility to transact without a card, using a QR code payment. The company also released Ozow PIN, which simplifies EFT transactions using a four-step payment process.[19]
In February 2022, Ozow partnered with another local payment provider, Zapper, to offer payment services on Zapper's mobile app.[20]
In addition to its payment services, the company offers refunds[21] and withdrawal[22] services to business clients.
Technology
[edit]Ozow is Thawte certified. Ozow provides network infrastructure for online payment processing for merchants and customers.[23]
Regulatory
[edit]Ozow is authorised as a System Operator and registered as a Third Party Payment Provider with the Payments Association of South Africa (PASA). Ozow applies PCI DSS security standards to its automated EFT platform.
References
[edit]- ^ "i-Pay, PayU roll out new EFT system to SA online stores". Ventureburn. 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Staff Writer (2019-04-05). "i-Pay rebrands to Ozow, prioritises SME support". ITWeb. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Letsebe, Kgaogelo (2018-04-09). "Most online shoppers prefer to pay cash". ITWeb. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Ozow". Invest Cape Town. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Serial entrepreneur Thomas Pays on his journey to success through the years". CNBC Africa. 2019-08-26. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Ozow's Mitchan Adams On COVID-19: Well-positioned South African digital payments players are coining it right now". African Tech Roundup. 2020-03-30. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Here are the four South Africans joining Endeavor's Entrepreneur programme". Ventureburn. 2018-03-12. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Launch of Ozow to make shopping even easier with Instant EFT". www.iol.co.za. Archived from the original on 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "37: Caron Bramwell". CFO Talks. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Barely 5 years old, Ozow breaks R10bn transaction barrier, eyes aggressive expansion". www.iol.co.za. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Malinga, Sibahle (2020-03-20). "Digital payments soar amid COVID-19 fears". ITWeb. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Lotz, Brendyn (2020-12-02). "Ozow hits R1bn transaction mark thanks to Black Friday". htxt.africa. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "SA fintech startup Ozow raises follow-on funding from Kalon Venture Partners". Disrupt Africa. 2019-06-25. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "South African payments gateway Ozow raises $48M Series B led by Tencent". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
- ^ "Tencent leads R750m investment in SA fintech Ozow". Moneyweb. 2021-11-18. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
- ^ Odendaal, Natasha. "Ozow launches new payment innovation". www.engineeringnews.co.za. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "New way to pay online without an app and using your data". SowetanLIVE. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Get Your Online Business Booming". People Magazine. 2020-03-19. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ Malinga, Sibahle (2020-09-11). "Ozow aims to up digital inclusion with new payment solutions". ITWeb. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Ozow and Zapper partnership shows FinTech collaboration". Ventureburn. 2022-02-17. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ "Refunds & Payouts | Improve Your Brands Loyalty - Ozow". ozow.com. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ "Ozow Payouts | Receiving Payouts". ozow.com. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ "Online shopping: Five things to look out for when paying via Instant EFT". The South African. 2019-02-27. Retrieved 2020-12-22.