Airtel Payments Bank and Hitachi Payment Services have announced a new partnership aimed at expanding the availability of payment soundboxes for merchants across India. The collaboration is designed to speed up the adoption of digital payments by providing businesses with an easy-to-use device that delivers instant audio confirmations for every successful transaction. This initiative particularly focuses on helping small and medium business owners accept digital payments more confidently and securely.
Key Takeaways
- Airtel Payments Bank is partnering with Hitachi Payment Services to supply a soundbox solution to merchants.
- The device gives instant, multilingual audio alerts for received payments and can also support merchant promotions.
- The aim is to help more merchants across India, in both urban and rural areas, adopt digital payments confidently.
- Airtel Payments Bank first introduced its soundbox service for merchant partners earlier in 2024.
The payment soundbox itself is becoming something of a standard fixture in India’s growing digital economy. You’ll often find them in small shops, roadside stalls, and even in local grocery stores. These compact devices connect directly to a merchant’s account and play an audio alert whenever a customer completes a UPI or other digital payment. It saves merchants the trouble of repeatedly checking their phones and also helps avoid confusion or disputes over payments. The soundbox under this partnership goes a step further by offering alerts in multiple languages and even allowing merchants to promote special offers or deals to their customers.
Through this partnership, Hitachi Payment Services will handle the complete deployment process for merchants. This includes onboarding, training, installation of devices, and managing payment settlements. Airtel Payments Bank, which rolled out its soundbox earlier in 2024, is now working with Hitachi to meet the rising demand for these devices while continuing its efforts with existing partners.
Speaking about the collaboration, Ganesh Ananthanarayanan, Chief Operating Officer of Airtel Payments Bank, said the partnership will bring added convenience to both merchants and customers by making digital transactions simpler through real-time audio confirmations. He also mentioned that the soundbox would help small and medium businesses improve efficiency and overall payment experience.
Anuj Khosla, who leads the digital business at Hitachi Payment Services, shared that the partnership brings together Hitachi’s deep experience in digital payments and Airtel Payments Bank’s vast merchant network. According to him, this collaboration will help merchants across both urban and rural regions gain access to reliable digital payment tools.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q. What is a payment soundbox?
A. A payment soundbox is a small speaker device that gives merchants an instant audio notification when they receive a digital payment from a customer.
Q. Who are the two companies in this partnership?
A. Airtel Payments Bank, a digital bank in India, has partnered with Hitachi Payment Services, a company that provides payment and commerce solutions.
Q. How does this partnership help merchants?
A. It provides merchants with a reliable device for instant payment confirmation, which helps build trust with customers and allows merchants to manage their business more smoothly without checking their phones for messages. The device also supports promotions.
Q. Is this a new product for Airtel Payments Bank?
A. No, Airtel Payments Bank launched its soundbox for merchants earlier in 2024. This new partnership with Hitachi is to expand its deployment and meet growing demand.
Q. Where will these soundboxes be available?
A. The companies aim to deploy the soundbox solution to merchants across both urban and rural India.
