We're told eQR aims to provide Australian consumers and merchants with better, simpler, data-rich payments experiences no matter where consumers choose to shop –  online, mobile or at the checkout - and will begin to rollout as a new consumer payment option before Christmas, and as you’ll see a little further below, eftpos Chief Product Officer Matt Barr joined iTWireTV to tell us all about it.

However, before we get there, eftpos CEO Stephen Benton said it was “great to have early partners in the banking and retail community of the calibre of Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank, Coles, Woolworths because the eQR platform is about reimagining the Australian payment experience, especially when businesses are looking to new digital innovations to help improve efficiency and create better customer experiences beyond payments." 

FinTech partners like Merchant Warrior, Azupay and Beem It will also help drive innovation and onboard more Australian merchants to eQR before Christmas and beyond, in categories such as online entertainment, charities and fast food, with a pipeline of value-added features starting with payments.

Benton said the rollout comes at a perfect time when Australians have already become familiar with QR code technology through daily interactions with COVID19 check-ins, adding: 

“We expect eQR will quickly become the QR equivalent of eftpos Tap& Pay on debit cards. COVID has changed customer behaviour and Australians are now ready for the enhanced payment experience offered by eQR. It is great to have the support of iconic brands like Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank, Coles, Woolworths, Azupay, Beem It and Merchant Warrior as we roll this out across the country.

“The eQR platform aims to provide better experiences for consumers and merchants through added security, loyalty, offers and digital receipts, no matter where they choose to shop – online, on their mobile or at the checkout.”

eftpos completed the first stage of the eQR build in July 2021 and is currently in trial with several Australian merchants.

Here’s my video interview with eftpos CPO Matt Barr, after which you’ll see executive commentary from CommBank, NAB, Coles, Woolies, Azupay, Beem It and Merchant Warrior, so please read on!

Commonwealth Bank, General Manager, Merchant Solutions, Karen Last said: “We’ve seen our business customers become increasingly familiar using QR codes and we’re working with eftpos to support the roll out of eQR. We’re looking forward to working together to bring this capability to our merchants in the future.”

NAB Executive MerchantServices, Mark Raymer said: “Our customers are increasingly choosing faster and digital ways to buy, sell and make payments. We are delighted to be working with eftpos to provide our customers with another innovative payment option.”

Coles General Manager of Financial Services Paul Askew said: “Coles is looking forward to working with eftpos to improve the customer experience when using eQR to make a payment in our stores and linking this to other functions such as loyalty.”

Woolworths Group's Wpay Managing Director Paul Monnington said it was pleased to adopt QR to help offer its customers a simple way to combine payments and rewards in one transaction. "We know speed and ease through the checkout are increasingly important to our customers amid their busy lives. Now is the perfect time to introduce QR and we look forward to building the next generation of seamless payment experiences with eftpos in the months ahead."

Azupay CEO John Murphy said: “Azupay has been an early force in the FinTech space supporting QR codes for payments. It’s great to see them become widely available as an option for Australians to pay through eQR. We’re excited to be applying our deep experience to support the adoption of eQR by more merchants across Australia.”

Beem It CEO Mark Britt said: “Beem It is using assets like eQR to create compelling innovations within a local ecosystem for consumers, Fintechs, merchants to enhance digital commerce, and make Beem It available to more people with more services and features.”

Founder and CEO of Merchant Warrior, Raky Pathak said: "Merchant Warrior is always looking to enhance our holistic suite of payment solutions for our users to stay at the forefront of innovation, which is why we are excited to partner with eftpos to deliver eQR to our merchants. eQR is an excellent addition as besides payments, it also enables intuitive digital features like split payments and loyalty redemptions. With this all-in-one solution, our merchants can provide a more seamless, convenient and rewarding payment experience to their customers."