You don't need 10,000 terminals. You need 10,000 phones.

While discussing scale, reach, and how to support informal traders in rural areas, the leadership team of an acquiring bank looked at me and said:

"Attie, we love the idea. But where would we even start with 10,000 terminals?"

I smiled.

"You don't need 10,000 terminals. You just need 10,000 phones."

And suddenly, we were talking about possibility.

The terminal is no longer the only starting point

For decades, the payment terminal was the gateway to merchant acceptance. And to be clear, terminals still matter — they're fast, robust, and perfect for high-volume retail environments.

But they're not always the right tool for every job.

Today, a new generation of merchants is emerging: mobile-first, digitally aware, and operating in markets where infrastructure is thin and margins are tighter. For them, SoftPOS isn't just an alternative. It's the on-ramp to the digital economy.

Tap-to-Phone: simple, secure, scalable

SoftPOS turns an NFC-enabled Android smartphone into a certified payment device — and Apple is steadily expanding the countries where Tap to Pay on iPhone can be used for acceptance.

No cables. No maintenance. No courier delays.

It empowers:

• Micro-merchants to get paid
• Acquirers to scale affordably
• Fintechs to launch without logistical bottlenecks

And when paired with a modern orchestration layer and intelligent routing, SoftPOS becomes part of a broader acceptance strategy rather than just a side project.

Both have a place — but the starting point has shifted

I'm not saying SoftPOS replaces terminals entirely. The two will co-exist. High-throughput merchants may always prefer physical devices.

But for small merchants, market activations, or remote areas, SoftPOS is often the better first move. It's about starting smaller, moving faster, and growing smarter.

Are you still leading with hardware?

If you're still starting every discussion with "How many terminals?", you might be missing the bigger picture.

Start instead with:

• Who are your merchants?
• Where are they operating?
• What barriers stand in the way of acceptance?

SoftPOS removes friction. It removes cost. It removes excuses. And when deployed strategically, it unlocks markets that were previously unserviceable.

The real question

So the real question isn't "terminal or SoftPOS?"

It's: are you matching the right tool to the right merchant?

The opportunity is to design a blended acceptance model — one that meets your market where it is, and leads it where it needs to go.