Yoyo Wallet launches in Singapore

Declares war on Android and Apple Pay, reports Tech in Asia

Yoyo Wallet, the European mobile payments and rewards app, is expanding to Asia and Singapore is its first destination.

Yoyo Wallet CEO Alain Falys is unfazed at the prospect of going head-to-head with the likes of Samsung, Android, and Apple Pay. He says Yoyo will be the first in the market to combine payment with loyalty and provide real value to both retailers and consumers.

The start-up is rather late to the party. Apple Pay launched in Singapore in April, and both Android and Samsung Pay went live last month. Yoyo Wallet initially only works at one location in Singapore — at Foodclique, a food court at the National University of Singapore.

“Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and PayPal constantly look for novelties. However, none of the major players are providing additional value that’s beneficial for customers or retailers beyond the actual purchase,” he says.

Payments using Yoyo Wallet are processed via a QR code on the app which is scanned by the shop assistant at the cash register. For every transaction done through Yoyo, users collect loyalty points and personalised discounts and offers.

For retailers, the mobile wallet offers Yoyo Engage, a web tool that helps them understand how their consumers behave, as well as a mechanism to engage with them better. For example, a merchant can use the tool to isolate and target customers that prefer drinking flat white coffee before 9 a.m. and send them individualised promotional offers.

Yoyo Wallet is cagey regarding growth plans in Asia but says it plans on using Singapore as its hub. Expansion to other countries will only take place after success in the city-state, it adds. Figures pertaining to how much cash it plans on investing were not revealed.
This is an excerpt from Tech in Asia. You can read the full article here