The Merchant Expansion Through Digital Acceptance and Liquidity (MEDAL) Facility was created in Jordan to test methods for supporting “mobile payment service providers (mPSPs) [attempting] to meet certain merchant acquisition and QR-code transaction targets by experimenting with and developing business, operational and awareness strategies.” The program eventually provided two mPSPs a total of JOD 47,500 (USD 67,000) each because they met all three sets of the program targets, thus receiving the funds in three tranches. The targets included increasing the number of customer transactions performed via pre-existing merchant accounts as well as bringing on 1,000 new merchants.
In comparing data from 3-month periods prior to and following the project, the authors found no significant difference in “the cash-out value and volume of customers interacting with MEDAL Facility merchants.” However, there was an increase in the total number of transactions of all types.
To improve the MEDAL Facility, the authors suggest: (1) refining the targets, perhaps to focus on merchant acquisition in the first phase and transaction goals in the second phase; (2) carrying out awareness campaigns and training for merchants, due to the key role they play in engaging consumers to make purchases via QR codes; (3) “targeting merchant segments with more tech-savvy customers;” and (4) measuring the long-term effects of the intervention.
This is a summary of a paper published by Jordan Payments and Clearing Company and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), March 2022, 23 pages, available at https://www.findevgateway.org/paper/2022/03/merchant-expansion-through-digital-acceptance-and-liquidity-medal-facility-report.
By Sheen Gupta, Research Associate
Additional Resources
JoPACC homepage
https://www.jopacc.com/
GIZ homepage
https://www.giz.de/
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