India’s ftcash Launches Mobile PoS for Car Repairs

Most of us don’t think too much about our car services—we tend to treat them like doctor visits, never thinking much about them before absolutely necessary But car services think about their operations all the time. Recently, car service organizations in India got a boost from ftcash, which released a new mobile point-of-sale (PoS) system for the automobile service center, especially those in the small to medium-sized business (SMB) range.

While ftcash itself is a major growth figure in financial technology in India, the latest move allows it to show why it’s such a growth operation. Already, just over 500 different service centers throughout India use the system, which can actually be put to work with little more than a bank account and a standard feature phone.

Those who want to make payments, meanwhile, can do so through a variety of measures, ranging from net banking to digital wallets to even credit and debit cards, all running through the same interface. Customers make payments accordingly, and the service center is subsequently notified so that the customer’s car can be returned.

Such platforms have become particularly valuable following the disastrous events of late last year when the Indian government moved to demonetize larger-value currency notes in the country. In fact, there’s been a 40 percent month-on-month demand growth for cashless payment facilitation in car service shops, so ftcash’s option is likely a welcome and valuable one.

It would be easy to ask why a company like Square didn’t step in, but Square might have a tough time competing with local firms who understand the cultural and technological needs of the region. A system that can work with comparatively bare-bones hardware like feature phones will likely lend itself well to working with more sophisticated shops that have smartphones, tablets, or even PCs on hand. Since it works well in the lower strata it can probably more readily move upward as needed, allowing it access to the full range of shops.

A market penetration strategy isn’t always the best strategy, but it can mean spectacular growth and new prominence in the field. Fast-growing ftcash has proven as much out, and going forward, it will likely only continue to do so.