Manage a business is not easy. Fortunately, technology companies make it easier for all business owners to manage and grow their business.

iKhokha is one of South Africa’s leading fintech companies. Operating from its headquarters in Umhlanga, iKhokha is constantly developing solutions to help businesses grow.

iKhokha is best known for its card machines. But how are its devices different from traditional bank speed points?

In the past, businesses paid rental fees to banks to use their card machines. With iKhokha, business owners can purchase a device directly to avoid monthly rental fees.

Visit www.ikhokha.com for more information

Every financial service provider charges a transaction fee each time a card is swiped, tapped or inserted into a card machine.

iKhokha further incentivizes its merchants by lowering their transaction rates (from 2.75%) the more they sell.

According to iKhokha co-founder Ramsay Daly, although card machines are the bread and butter of the business, it is only the first piece of iKhokha’s small business activation puzzle.

“We started with card acceptance, and along the way we’ve realized there are other exciting areas we can solve,” says Daly. From now on, iKhokha is diversifying its offer to offer more business solutions.

For chief technology officer Derek van Daal, iKhokha’s new range of online payment solutions can be a game-changer for small businesses. “Fintech is an exciting space to be in right now,” says Van Daal, who is the former chief technical officer of First National Bank. “At iKhokha, we build technology that is on par with the best companies around the world.”

Getting into e-commerce

Eager to prove that its business tools aren’t just for brick-and-mortar stores, iKhokha has made a big splash in the e-commerce space after launching a series of digital products in recent months.

The first was the iK payment gateway, a payment gateway for WordPress (WooCommerce) websites that allows online businesses to accept debit and credit card payments through their websites. Coming soon to Wix, this payment gateway also offers impressive transaction rates, starting at 2.85%/transaction.

But what about those who don’t have a website or online store?

Taking note of the increase in remote working and digital services, iKhokha set out to create an offering that would allow merchants to get paid online without a fully operational online store.

Recently, iKhokha launched iK Pay Link on the free iKhokha app. Using iK Pay Link, iKhokha merchants can send a payment link to a customer via social media, WhatsApp, SMS or email. They can even add the link to the digital invoices!

Growth-oriented digital products

iKhokha also offers all merchants a way to immediately increase their basket size to generate more revenue without any expense. It’s called iK Sells, another cool feature of the iKhokha app. With iK Vend, merchants can sell digital services such as prepaid airtime, data and SMS plans. They can also sell prepaid utilities and pay various bills, including traffic fines and DStv bills.

The company even offers eligible merchants access to funding via iK Cash Advance, also hosted in the iKhokha app. Similar to a short-term loan, a cash advance gives businesses a cash injection when they need it most – helping them avoid cash flow problems, order inventory, cover a shortfall or upgrade equipment.

Best of all, the iK cash advance incurs no compound interest and is repaid with a percentage of future card sales. It’s a popular product because over 65% of cash advance users choose to take another cash advance once they’ve paid off.

As iKhokha continues to grow, the company promises to add more products (in the physical and digital payments space) to empower and uplift those who have taken the leap into entrepreneurship.

“Our goal is to make life easier for our merchants so they can focus on their business,” says Daly.

Visit www.ikhokha.com for more information.

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