Capitec Pay Explained

Capitec Pay is a card-free online payment method for Capitec Bank clients, allowing Capitec Bank clients to pay directly from their accounts without sharing card details or login credentials. To pay using Capitec Pay, a customer selects it during online checkout, enters their phone number, account number, or ID, then approves the payment in the Capitec banking app. Capitec Pay enables secure, app-based payments for Capitec Bank clients.

How Capitec Pay Works

Customers select the Capitec Pay option, then enter their phone number, account number, or ID number to request the payment. The customer then logs in to their Capitec banking app to approve the transaction. Once customers choose Capitec Pay, they avoid having to enter or share sensitive banking details or card information in the online checkout flow. Capitec Bank describes Capitec Pay as a proprietary technology that allows payment service providers and their merchants to request payments from Capitec customers.

Payment requests must be approved within 5 minutes in the Capitec app, and transactions can be initiated using the client's phone number or ID number that is linked to their Capitec banking app. Capitec Pay requires approval in the banking app, requiring the customer to confirm the payment in their linked Capitec mobile application. Most clients use their phone number as the identifier.

What You Need to Use Capitec Pay

To use Capitec Pay, the customer must have already:

• a transactional Capitec Bank account
• the Capitec Banking App installed on a cellphone
• internet connectivity

The Capitec Pay process then follows this flow:

1. Enter the Capitec Pay payment details
2. Confirm the payment amount
3. Choose phone number, account number or ID to link the payment to
4. Approve the payment on the app

Transactions are initiated through one of three identifiers that are linked: a cellphone number, Capitec account number, or an ID number. EBANX, a payment methods processor, reports that using the ID number is less common, with most clients opting to use the cellphone number to identify the account for the transaction. In addition, choosing the Capitec account number seems to be a fallback option, as it requires some effort from the client to obtain their account number, while the other options should be more readily available. The chosen identifier means the payment service provider needs to obtain or verify these details during the payment initiation. Capitec pay does not work with any bank or account, is not a credit/debit card-based method, and does not work for non-Capitec clients of South African financial institutions.

What Happens After You Pay

Once a customer completes the payment, the payment status updates from pending to confirmed.

What Makes it Different

Capitec Pay facilitates app-based, identifier-linked payments, with the payment source being a Capitec account, not a payment card. The proof is not in the app request, but in receiving a payment request push notification and approving it in the Capitec app. Capitec Bank describes Capitec Pay as a proprietary technology to request payments from Capitec clients, while firms that accept multiple payment options describe Capitec Pay as a mobile and app-based payment method that allows Capitec clients to pay directly from their Capitec account using a linked identifier, instead of a credit/credit card.

A tech news site collected the bank's description of Capitec Pay as: select Capitec Pay / enter cellphone/account/ID number / approve the payment via remote PIN or biometrics. Netcash says that Capitec Pay customers enter their cell phone and ID numbers at checkout, then approve the instant payment session via the app.

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