Welcome to the 21st century and the digital economy, where transactions can be carried out online. You can order goods and make purchases using online banking and money transfer services, and PayFast is one of such services. In this article, we will be teaching you what PayFast is and how it works as well as how you can register to use the service.
What is PayFast?
PayFast is an online payment processing service in South Africa that allows its users to make easy and secure payments for goods and services online. The system supports fast and instant money transfer online, allowing online shoppers access to internet banking services, permitting them to make Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) which are instantly verified.
Why should you consider using PayFast for your online payments and transactions? PayFast allows its customers to pay for monthly subscriptions, deposits and pre-orders. It also has a flexible and user-friendly system design that makes carrying out these transactions easy. By signing up and registering with PayFast, you can easily manage your payments via your PayFast online wallet.
How does PayFast work?
PayFast is an online payment platform that allows users to sign up for free. You are only required to pay a small fee for every successful payment transaction made. You are not required to pay any monthly subscription fees or any other hidden payments. The PayFast payment system supports several different payment formats, including debit cards, credit and cheque cards, Mobicred and instant EFT. PayFast uses an EFT (electronic fund transfer) system, which allows you to make payments and transfer online. Here is how an EFT system works:
- As the buyer, you are required to connect your PayFast account with your online banking system. PayFast doesn’t store money for you; it is a payment transfer system that is connected to your online banking system. Once you select your bank and login using your online banking credentials, your PayFast and online banking system are in sync.
- Then you would be required to choose which account you will be making payments from. Whether you are a business or an individual, you would have to choose from which account you would prefer to make your payment; it could be a current account or savings, whichever you choose.
- After choosing your preferred account, you would have to verify your payment with your bank on their mobile device. Since PayFast doesn’t store your money for you and acts as an auxiliary application, you would have to verify your payment with your bank.
- When the payment is processed, it is instantly reflected in your PayFast account. So, this is how making payments with PayFast works using an electronic fund transfer system. This process is very easy and very secure and promises you easy access to your transaction details and payment logs.
Benefits of an Instant EFT
Using an instant electronic fund transfer system such as PayFast has several benefits to its users. Some of the benefits include the following:
- When making payments through an instant EFT, there is no two-day wait period. Your payment clears out immediately, and you don’t have to wait for two days. You can even carry out payments over the weekend and non-working days.
- Instant EFT payments are supported by online banking systems, which have been made available by many banks in South Africa. Instant EFT payments support payments made via FNB, Investec, Nedbank, ABSA, Capitec Bank, and Standard Bank.
- Sometimes, making payments can be a tedious act with many delays during checkout but using an Instant EFT such as PayFast eliminates those delays that may occur.
- The transaction fees are considerably smaller with EFT payments. You are only required to pay a small transaction fee when you make a sale.
- Another benefit is that all the actions you perform are quickly updated and displayed on the PayFast dashboard, and you can monitor payment transactions.
To enjoy all the benefits listed above, you would have to sign up and register for their services. Registration is free. Once you are registered and verified, you can start making payments via email or your website.
How to register for a PayFast account
Registering for PayFast is free and easy. You can register online using your computer or your mobile device from the comfort of your home by following these steps:
Step 1: Open the PayFast website on your device browser. Go to www.payfast.co.za
Step 2: navigate the website’s landing page and find the ‘sign up/register button. Click on the button to proceed to the next step.
Step 3: Follow the instructions, fill in all the necessary information, including your email address and password, and then choose the type of account. When you have done these, click on “continue”.
Step 4: move on to verifying your account via your email address.
Step 5: After verifying your email address, go to the PayFast page and click on settings in the menu bar. In settings, click on “integration”.
Step 6: to set up your WooCommerce store, you will need a merchant ID and a merchant key. Copy both your Merchant ID and Merchant Key to your clipboard.
Step 7: proceed to adding and copying a passphrase.
Step 8: for you to be able to use subscriptions and pre-orders, you would have to enable Ad hoc payments in your settings. You can do this by going to settings – integration – “recurring payments”. This will allow you to pay for subscriptions and pre-orders.
Note: several goods and services cannot process payments through PayFast payment services. Ensure that your business doesn’t fall within this category before signing up for this service. After registering your account, ensure that your account is secure with a good enough password and authentication system. We will teach you how to enable two-factor authentication for your account and how to change your password if need be.
How to enable two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication uses both your password and your mobile phone number to log into your PayFast account. This ensures a better level of security. To enable two-factor authentication, follow these steps:
- First, you would have to log in to your PayFast account.
- After logging in, navigate the page to find the ‘profile’ tab and click on that.
- Find the ‘security information’ button and click on that, then proceed to click on the ‘two-factor authentication’ tab.
- Key in your mobile phone number along with your country code in the corresponding fields and then hit the ‘subscribe button.
- Go on to click the link displayed. This will enable the ‘two-factor authentication’ system’, and your account will be more safe and secure.
If after this you would still like to change your password, you can do that following these steps.
Login to your PayFast account and click on the “profile” button.
Find the ‘security button and click on it. Then proceed to click ‘edit’, which is situated on the right-hand corner of the page.
Enter your current password and the new password you would like to use and click on confirm.
Cut out those long waiting periods and delays from your banking experience and send money easily. Using PayFast, your online banking experience is that much better. Because the system uses online banking services, you can carry out transactions on non-working days, and the best part is that the registration for the service is free, and the transaction fees are relatively smaller. We hope this article covers the bulk of your interests with regards to the PayFast service. If there is anything more, you would like to know, visit their website for more information.