STICPAY: Payment Gateway in Singapore

As a wealthy nation with a high population of digitally-aware consumers, e-commerce in Singapore is booming with an average annual spend of SGD 2,206.24 (US$1,618) ranking its shoppers among some of the world’s biggest online spenders.

To capitalise on this, any business looking to develop a strong and safe e-commerce strategy in Singapore needs to choose wisely when selecting ways to process its customers’ electronic payments – especially as the emergence of modern e-wallet technology means there are plenty of options.

E-wallets are electronic applications for depositing, managing, spending, transferring and withdrawing money. Users put funds into the wallet using a variety of payment methods, with STICPAY for example offering the following options to its customers:

• Visa
• MasterCard
• UnionPay China
• Bank transfers
• Cryptocurrency

They then use the wallet for making transactions. Fast, secure and easy-to-use, e-wallets are increasing in popularity and research signals that credit card use in Singapore is falling while digital wallet use is growing.

Also, with mobile e-commerce in Singapore expected to be worth SGD 6.52 billion (US$4.8 billion) by 2023, STICPAY could be the best payment gateway for your business, as well as offering a way to make money transfers in and out of Singapore too.

What is a payment gateway?

Typically, a payment gateway allows a business to accept and process its customers’ payments on an e-commerce site. During checkout, customers use the payment gateway to provide their financial details for the transaction. Then the gateway communicates with the payment processor and the issuing bank to authorise the transaction.

For many years, from a seller’s perspective, there have been two common ways to do this:

• Using a merchant account and ID linked to a separate payment gateway service. With one party authorising the online transaction, but another actually processing the payment, this requires technical integration, web development skills and is typically slower to set up.

• Using a third-party‘s payment gateway combined with a merchant account system. With one company providing both authorisation and approval, this is typically faster and easier to set up, but comes with higher fees.

But the digital wallet revolution has challenged these models, especially when it comes to mobile e-commerce, offering faster, cheaper and more flexible ways to become a successful online merchant by integrating e-wallets like STICPAY as your payment gateway.

Key Features To Look For In Payment Gateways And Alternatives

If you are a Singapore-based merchant looking for a payment gateway - or maybe a global business with customers in Singapore - here are some of the main considerations:

• Costs and terms: All payment providers have different fee structures and these could include set-up costs, monthly or annual subscriptions, and percentage fees or fixed fees per transaction. You may also be restricted to minimum or maximum transaction numbers per month.

• Multiple currencies: Do you have an international customer base? If so, your payment gateway will need to accept multiple currencies.

• Security: Look for a payment gateway provider that protects you as well as your customers. Selling online means you must keep your customer data secure. But it also means you could be susceptible to fraud. Only use payment gateways offering advanced security and anti-fraud measures.

• User experience: To avoid abandoned checkouts and therefore lost business, select a payment gateway that is fast, user-friendly and flexible. It should have a straightforward checkout process and offer local and international currency transactions. Select a payment gateway that allows customers to settle transactions in their native language, national currency and via local payment methods.

Benefits of STICPAY as a payment gateway

To accept transactions online, Singapore merchants can integrate STICPAY as a payment gateway directly into their platforms via an Open API and its simple documentation.

STICPAY's payment gateway service for merchants is:

Secure: Merchants and customers are monitored with strict KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) checks. And as all transfers are secure and indemnified, chargeback risks are limited on the platform.

Cost-effective: STICPAY charges merchants a competitive 2.5% + $0.3 fee for processing fiat and 1.8% for accepting cryptocurrency transactions - and customers themselves have zero fees when paying the merchant.

Local: Singapore customers can use the local bank wire option to withdraw money from their STICPAY accounts rapidly and cost-efficiently. The local bank wire option allows you to receive and withdraw funds in your own currency.

Global: STICPAY is available in over 190 countries, with 29 fiat currencies and three cryptocurrencies supported and 19 languages.

Technology-friendly: STICPAY supports PHP. Users can access the service via redesigned iOS and Android smartphone apps.

Convenient to set up: Upon successful account creation and verification, STICPAY issues businesses a unique merchant ID, allowing them to create multi-currency accounts.

Easy to use: STICPAY offers multiple payment methods for deposits and withdrawals, including Visa, MasterCard, UnionPay China, cryptocurrency, and bank transfers.

In summary, STICPAY combines an e-wallet solution with a robust payment gateway for merchants in Singapore and it only takes a few minutes to get started.

Ready to accept payments with STICPAY? Open a merchant account with STICPAY now!

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