HiPay signs with SisalPay to enable cash payments for online purchases at over 45.000 payment points in Italy

HiPay, the business unit of  HiMedia Group (ISIN Code FR0000075988 HIM, HIM.FR) dedicated to online payments, has signed a unique agreement with SisalPay, a leading cash based payment solution, to enable Italian e-shoppers to pay cash for their online  purchases at SisalPay points throughout Italy.

From today all of HiPay’s e-commerce retailers will be able to offer cash payments to their Italian customers through the local network of over 45.000 SisalPay points throughout Italy (bars, tobacconists, newsstands….) available 7 days a week.

« We are happy to announce our partnership with HiPay which extends our cash payment solution to the largest number of retailers with a shared objective: respond to the needs and desires of the Italian consumers » explains Maurizio Santacroce, Manager of the Business Unit Digital Games & Service at Sisal.

With €11.2 billion in turnover, 14 million online shoppers and a growth rate of over 18% in 2013, Italian e-commerce is one of the fastest growing markets in Western Europe. Cash remains the preferred payment method in Italy for any type of commerce.  HiPay now allows Italian consumers to purchase online using the payment method which is most familiar and most trusted while at the same time digitalizing the process for merchants.

« Paying in cash is an Italian habit not very useful online. We chose HiPay as our payment partner because they allow us to give our users what they want through SisalPay without any extra effort on our part » says Giorgio Grilli, founder of www.ufficiodiscount.com, one of the first HiPay customers to integrate the new solution.

HiPay proposes SisalPay as a valid alternative to « contraseggno » (Cash on Delivery).  Mistrust of digital transactions is one of the leading barriers to online purchases so Cash on Delivery remains the most prevalent payment method in many e-commerce segments such as clothing and cosmetics. With SisalPay, the merchant is guaranteed he will receive payment before he ships the goods reducing non-deliverable orders and the costs of refused shipments which can reach 20% of transactions.

« With this partnership, HiPay is the first to make SisalPay, a popular and well distributed payment network, available for e-commerce purchases. Our common goal in all markets where we operate is to provide merchants with locally adapted payment methods to help maximize successful transactions » say Bruno Gloaguen, Director Europe of HiPay.

To download the press release, click here.