Big Issue magazine has rolled out contactless payments to its sellers in the UK.
Last year, the magazine held trials of the technology in London, Bath, Birmingham, Bristol and Nottingham.
Now the technology from Swedish firm iZettle has been is rolled out nationwide.
The PayPal owned FinTech firm reports that more than 70 per cent of payments in the UK are now cashless and this partnership will help boost financial inclusion for its vendors.
Jim Hannah, 59, who sells the magazine in Norwich, said: “I am really pleased to be able to offer card payments to my lovely customers, which I am now able to do thanks to the Big Issue team and iZettle.
“Before all this started I had no ID, no bank account and a rubbish phone and now I have a decent smartphone, a passport, a bank account and a card reader. I now feel ready for a cashless future.”
The BBC reports that iZettle is making card readers available to Big Issue vendors for the reduced price of £9, and will benefit from a per-transaction fee “significantly lower” than its standard rate of 1.75 per cent.
Big Issue Managing Director Russell Blackman said: “Big issue vendors are micro entrepreneurs, effectively running their own small businesses. It has long been our intention to provide our vendors with the opportunity to cater for their customers’ needs and increase their ability to earn a legitimate income.”
“The Big Issue looks forward to, in partnership with iZettle, rolling the initiative out nationally, in an effort to improve levels of financial inclusion for vendors, who often live lives that are blighted by poverty and who have difficulty accessing mainstream financial services and products typically offered by retail banks.”
Edward Hallett, iZettle UK managing director added: “We’re constantly looking at ways we can aid financial inclusion so it’s fantastic that we’ve been able to partner with The Big Issue.
“Our partnership ensures that vendors never have to miss out on a sale again.”