Credit card giant American Express recently bought in a minority stake in India-based Ezetap, a mobile credit card processor that accepts both magnetic and chip-and-PIN cards with a simple dongle.
Ezetap is similar to American-based Square since both devices process credit cards from tablets and smartphones. The difference is that Ezetap is equipped with a PIN pad to make it compatible with credit cards used in other parts of the world. It is this global appeal that sparked the interest of American Express.
The mobile point-of-sale solution for merchants retails for approximately $50.
This is not the first major financial institution to support Ezetap's efforts. Executives from PayPal, Yammer and Berggruen Holdings have also all invested in the company, which started in 2011.
"This investment is a validation about what we are doing and the potential of the market," Abhijit Bose, cofounder of Ezetap, said regarding the AmEx investment.
Ezetap plans to use American Express's investment to expand its markets in South East Asia and Africa. The company currently has 12,000 devices in circulation in these regions, but plans to expand to 100,000 devices by this time next year.
"Ezetap is one of the few mobile point of sale companies in the world that owns the entire technology stack from its hardware and application to its open platform, integration framework and processing," said Sanjay Rishi, President of American Express in South Asia.
Rishi said simple devices like Ezetap allow cash-reliant societies to readily adapt to the card-driven world.