Fuel management solution and mobile app launches in Africa

Payment24 a fuel management solution and mobile app that allows motorists, small business owners and fleet operators to make payment processes at the fuel pump has been launched.

The app is an international fuel payment system developed in South Africa and will be available to oil companies’ customers on their smartphones, allowing them to pay for fuel at over 600 filling stations across the country.

The move will position the oil company as a pioneer in mobile-based customer convenience in Africa, allowing the petroleum firm to enhance efficiencies, reduce the risk of losses due to incorrect grades of fuel being billed, and eliminate the risks of payment fraud or errors at the pump. The app also positions the company to enhance its ‘know your customer’ initiatives and lays the foundation for mobile-based loyalty programmes, promotions and referral programmes.

Using the app, motorists are geolocated at the filling station and input the pump number to authorise filling up and payment. Limits can be predetermined, and multiple family members or employees can be managed from a single dashboard, allowing the account owner to track and manage fuel expenses.

The joint CEOs of Payment24, Shadab Rahil and Nolan Daniels, say the app has gained significant traction in the market and is in use by major fleet owners and organisations across Africa and abroad. On the African continent, Payment24 lists the UN headquarters in Ethiopia and Standard Bank in Namibia as clients.

“Expanding on our growth in the fuel and transport sectors, our partnership with this oil company takes the advanced payment solution to the mobile phones of consumers and small business owners for the first time,” says Rahil.

“South African consumers and small business owners can now use this advanced fuel management and payment solution to reserve funds for fuel, speed up the payment process, control and track fuel expenditure by family members and employees, manage accounts and generate logs. In our pilot projects, customers reported a significantly improved experience and said they appreciated not having to hand over credit or debit cards or carry cash for fuel purchases,” he added.

For banks and petroleum companies, the white label app can be rebranded, customised and deployed, with no specialised infrastructure required.

“The mobile app reduces the cost and complexity of managing payment terminals on the forecourt, cuts the cost per transaction, enhances payment security and reduces time at the pumps. In addition, by ensuring only the correct grade of fuel is authorised, petrol grade errors – traditionally a significant expense item – are reduced. And because the platform is so convenient, app users tend to return to the same petroleum brand time and again,” says Daniel.

Edited By: Neo Sesinye
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