Mastercard and Square team up to bring card payments to the Falkland Islands’ SMBs

By Megha Bhattacharya

Square, Mastercard, and the Falkland Islands Government have recently announced a partnership, Connecting the Falkland, launched as part of the London Tech Week. The new partnership aims to solve the issue of card and digital payment acceptance faced by the Island’s SMBs.  The Falkland Islands’ remote location has made it difficult to install and maintain card payment machines. That, coupled with banking and compliance issues, made it difficult for SMBs to sign up for merchant accounts to accept cards and settle funds in their bank accounts.

“We have been a cash-heavy society for many years,” said Tim Waggott, Financial Secretary for the Falkland Islands Government. “But with increasing visitor numbers, we knew we needed to help our local businesses to make the shift to card payments. My predecessor here, James Wilson, had been working with industry to find a solution, and we are really pleased it has finally come to fruition with Square and Mastercard.

“With the coronavirus pandemic, it’s clearly an uncertain time for our business community, but they are resilient and used this time to get set up for the future. When the tourist trade returns, it’ll be more important than ever that we can give everyone safe and convenient ways to pay. This is a huge step forward, which will ensure that our industry is well-positioned to meet future demand and that Falkland Islands businesses are more financially empowered to expand.”

Mastercard, along with the Islands’ Government, connected to Square with an aim to help sellers access the bank accounts needed for payments settlement. This includes onboarding them to Square to provide them with mobile Square Readers to take payments and to integrate the latest Mastercard technology.

Jack Dorsey, CEO, and co-founder of Square, said, “Running a business is always hard, and these business owners have the added challenge of being in one of the most remote places on earth. Connecting the Falklands is a big step in creating a more inclusive global economy.”

PayTech Square allows for easy setting and automatic software and hardware updates. The collaboration with the PayTech enables sellers to start transacting right away without anyone from Square ever needing to set foot on the Falklands. With no long-term contracts or monthly subscriptions, Square was also a good fit for the Islands’ seasonal businesses who wanted a flexible payment option that wouldn’t charge them during the quieter winter months.

Mark Barnett, President of Mastercard Europe, said, “Empowering small business is at the heart of what we do. This project transforms business opportunities for Islanders and significantly improves the experience for locals and tourists alike, who can now pay simply and safely using Mastercard’s latest payment technology, including our sonic acceptance mark. Having been set the challenge of bringing payments to the Islands, we are delighted to have been able form this partnership, and we wish the Islands’ businesses every future success.”