The
number of iPhone users in the U.S. alone is projected around 63.2M this year
and with the new Apple Pay NFC (near-field communications) payment system going
live on October 20th, supported by payment giants American Express, MasterCard
and Visa, the multi-billion dollar mobile payments and transactional services
sector now appears to be hotter than ever. Alternative payment methods are set
to easily overtake credit/debit cards globally according to renowned sector
analyst WorldPay’s second edition of their extremely rigorous Global Guide to
Alternative Payments, which shows that online buying using alternative methods
will be as much as 59% of the space by just 2017.
E-wallets
will become more dominant than cards over the same interval, with cryptocurrencies
like Bitcoin also playing an increasingly prominent driver role in the decline
of debt/credit card usage. E-wallet payment processing was about $295B in 2012
alone, a figure set to rise a staggering 461% by 2017 to around $1,656B
according to WorldPay. China will be an increasingly prominent force as well in
the underlying dynamics, with 44% or more of transactions in China currently
using e-wallets and the huge success of the Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) IPO
telegraphing the future presence the company’s Alipay service, which represents
more than 30% of all such payments.
It
takes a shrewd company with considerable experience to make it in this game
today and one such company is Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE). NETE is a tech-driven
mobile payment and transaction services specialist with solid roots in the RUS
Fed and CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) via the company’s global
processing provider subsidiary, TOT Group, Inc., which includes Inc. Magazine’s
top pick for fastest growing company in 2012, Unified Payments. Also among the
NETE umbrella is Aptito, a next-gen cloud-based visual POS (point of sale)
payments platform developer (focused on iPad deployments). Aptito has an array
of exciting digital menu and mobile ordering offerings that are seamlessly hooked
into social media platforms like Facebook, right from inside the software
itself. Aptito even offers a mobile POS system, mPOS, via a cloud-based app.
Net
Element provides anywhere/anytime mobile payment solutions and value-added
transactional services, as well as marketing solutions that leverage
technologies like product review and recommendation engine dovetailing. The
company even provides customers with comprehensive data-driven business
analytics to make sense of it all. Another one of NETE’s companies, TOT Group
division, TOT Money, is already ranked as the top SMS text messaging content
provider in Russia by the country’s second largest telecom operator, Beeline.
The TOT Money platform is directly integrated into billing systems of major
mobile operators worldwide and offers websites a way to connect with customers,
giving them an easy payment option.
NETE
is in a unique position to help expand the still underdeveloped Russian/CIS
mobile payment sector, with global development centers, as well as key,
high-level business relationships throughout the region. CEO of NETE, Oleg
Firer, who has over a decade of experience in the payments industry, with a
particular emphasis on payments-based tech and M&A work, recently sat down
with strategic communications and IR/PR firm MissionIR to cover the waterfront
(http://nete.missionir.com/nete/interview.html).
Firer
went into not only the diverse experience and capabilities of NETE’s management
team, but a series of 2014 milestones that clearly detail the company’s path to
success. Among the highlights are a spate of multi-million dollar financings
the company has recently secured, completion of a $16M debt exchange
transaction, as well as trimming of the company’s overall architecture via some
non-core asset divestments. NETE has set itself up nicely for accelerating
revenue growth moving forward and Firer was keen to point out in the interview
how NETE is primed for some serious expansion in Russia/CIS, noting in
particular the recent $11M financing from Russia’s biggest private bank,
Alfa-Bank.
Acquire
additional data on Net Element at www.NetElement.com
About
MissionIR
MissionIR is committed to connecting the investment community with companies that have great potential and a strong dedication to building shareholder value. We know our reputation is based on the integrity of our clients and go to great lengths to ensure the companies represented adhere to sound business practices.
Sign up for “The Mission Report” at www.MissionIR.com
Please see disclaimer on the MissionIR website http://www.missionir.com/disclaimer.html
MissionIR is committed to connecting the investment community with companies that have great potential and a strong dedication to building shareholder value. We know our reputation is based on the integrity of our clients and go to great lengths to ensure the companies represented adhere to sound business practices.
Sign up for “The Mission Report” at www.MissionIR.com
Please see disclaimer on the MissionIR website http://www.missionir.com/disclaimer.html
