From dedicated terminals to mobile devices: the shift in payment acceptance

From dedicated payment terminals to mobile devices. Our report looks at how payment acceptance is evolving and what it means for your operations, costs and customer experience.

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Why businesses are moving away from dedicated payment terminals

For decades, checkout meant a dedicated payment terminal, a physical device that businesses had to buy, maintain, and replace regularly. That's changing.

As businesses look for ways to cut costs and simplify operations, they're recognising that payments don't need dedicated hardware. Any mobile device your team already carries (a smartphone or tablet) can process transactions securely.

This shift is reshaping how businesses think about payment acceptance. Instead of investing in expensive terminals and managing multiple devices across locations, retailers, hospitality venues, or transport operators are consolidating payments into mobile devices they already own, cutting hardware costs and reducing operational complexity.

Our report looks how this evolution is unfolding, what's driving it, and what it means for your bottom line and your operations.

What makes this shift possible and why it matters

The move from dedicated terminals to mobile payments isn't just a technology change. It's driven by three practical benefits that matter to every merchant:

• Lower costs. You eliminate expensive hardware purchases and ongoing maintenance. Instead of replacing terminals every few years, you consolidate payments into devices your team already uses.
• Easier management. One system. One integration. Multiple devices. Instead of managing separate payment hardware across locations, you integrate payment acceptance directly into your existing mobile devices, whether in-store, at the table, or on the move.
• Works with what you have. This approach integrates with standard mobile devices and existing systems, with no proprietary hardware required. No special infrastructure. Just straightforward payment acceptance that fits how you already operate.

This report explores how retailers, hospitality venues, and transport operators are making this shift, what security and compliance considerations matter, and how this evolution is changing payment acceptance across different use cases, from checkout lines to self-service kiosks to mobile payments on the go.

shop keeper with mobile for payment acceptance

Why this evolution matters for your business

The shift from dedicated terminals to mobile payment acceptance solves real business problems. You reduce hardware investment. You simplify device management. You give your staff flexibility to serve customers anywhere, checkout counters, dining tables, delivery vehicles.

But beyond cost savings and operational ease, there is also a wider effect. Payment acceptance becomes part of your digital operations, rather than a separate system that needs separate management.

For retailers, this means staff can process transactions using the devices they already carry, speeding up checkout and improving customer experience. For hospitality venues, it means table service payments without awkward waits. For transport and mobility operators, it means drivers can complete transactions on the move.

This isn't future technology. Leading businesses across retail, hospitality, and transport are implementing this approach right now, reducing costs, improving customer experience, and simplifying operations.

Ready to understand how this evolution could work for your business? Download the full report and explore the findings that matter most to your operation.

Download the full report

Next steps: understanding mobile payment acceptance for your business

Mobile payment acceptance is reshaping how businesses accept payments, and it's happening now. The cost savings are real. The operational simplification is tangible. The customer experience improvements are immediate.

The practical question is whether you're ready to evaluate it for your specific business model.

This report provides the analysis you need. It traces how different retailers, hospitality venues, and transport operators are implementing mobile payment acceptance, what security and compliance considerations matter, and what this means for your bottom line.

Some merchants prefer to evaluate independently. Others want to discuss possibilities with our team. Either way, we're here to help.

Want to discuss how this applies to your business?