FreeAgent with PayPal Here eases payments for small biz

BANGALORE, INDIA: Online accounting provider FreeAgent is making it easier for UK small businesses to get paid faster by their customers, through integration with PayPal's new payment service.

Their partnership makes it easier for small businesses to process credit and debit cards and take payments via their smartphone or tablet - wherever they do business, then automatically record the payments in their FreeAgent account, making it easier to manage their business finances on the go.

The integration means that FreeAgent - the online accounting system specifically designed for small businesses and freelancers - will enable its customers to use PayPal Here as a payment option to accept credit and debit cards when they create an invoice.

By using the PayPal Here app on their iPhone, Android smartphone or iPad, FreeAgent customers will be able to show their invoice to a client and have them pay instantly with their credit or debit card through the PayPal Here mobile chip and PIN card reader.

PayPal introduced the ‘pay as you go' PayPal Here app and Chip & PIN card reader for small and medium-sized businesses last year. There are no monthly fees,  the initial purchase price for the card reader and a small fee per transaction.

Business owners connect the reader with the PayPal Here app on their iPhone or Android smartphone, or iPad to start accepting card and PayPal payments anywhere in the UK with mobile or Wi-Fi reception.

Narik Patel, director of Mobile Merchant Services at PayPal UK, said: "We designed PayPal Here as a flexible, affordable way for businesses of all sizes to take card payments quickly and securely via their smartphone or tablet wherever there is 3G or wifi reception. It's been a hit with smaller businesses as it reduces their reliance on cash and cheque payments, it's ‘pay as you go' and businesses only pay a small fee when they take a card or PayPal payment.

"This integration with FreeAgent supports our vision to support small businesses to focus on what's important to them - getting paid and enabling them to focus on growth."