Serghei Fraseniuc, EASYPAY SYSTEM General Manager: "We are recommended by technical expertise and 4 years of experience in the field of electronic payments"
EasyPay System, the company led by Serghei Fraseniuc, can be considered a pioneer in the field of electronic payment terminals. In this market, things are in full swing of development, and choosing EasyPay System as a partner can be a great advantage for your company, because this is the only way you can be helped to start a business in the field of payment terminals; practically being offered a turnkey deal. To learn more about EasyPay System and their work, we invite you to read this cover story material.
Please tell us a few things about yourself and what you do in the vending industry.
To describe the beginnings of activity in this industry, I will go back to the crisis period of 2007-2008. After the crisis, during which I also worked in construction and in the steel products industry, I started to focus on other businesses. For the 21st century, I thought a profitable business would be one that involved selling a service, and among the possibilities studied was vending.
I studied several branches, including coffee machines, but I ended up with payment terminal machines, which until that moment had not been introduced in Romania, but there were about 3 companies that offered this service. We then started the collaboration with the company Rompay Solutions, bought the machines and started to study the market, after which we put the machines into operation. So, I came to vending by looking for a new domain following the crisis.
What are the main activities of your company, EasyPay System?
The EasyPay System company was opened in 2010, and on May 19 of that year we introduced the first machine, so soon it will be 4 years since the first machine was installed. It was very difficult at the beginning, because we were offering a new service, which was not very well known in Romania. After the development of this industry in Bucharest, where this business started, we started to have our first customers and we were receiving very good feedback. EasyPay System now collaborates with the top 3 processing companies – Rompay, Qiwi and Zebra Pay.
Our own network now includes almost 200 terminals that since April 2013 we have started to produce, both for us and for other customers who want to enter this vending niche. The components come from Europe, and we assemble them in Romania. Therefore, the first activity consists in operating its own network of terminals, and the second refers to the quality of EasyPay terminal manufacturer, which complies with all European quality standards. This year we aim for a 50% increase compared to the current capacity, namely to reach a capacity of 300 devices. For customers, we offer a “turnkey” business, i.e. we produce the devices and through our 4 years of experience in the field we can help the customer find a location, but we also offer training for the customer’s employees and for the technicians who will deal with the devices,
One of the missions of your company is to offer the population an alternative payment system through self-service terminals. Please give us more details about this operating activity: how many machines you have, where they are located, what services you offer, etc.
The machines are located in the retail area or in the markets, but we also have street machines. One of the main targets was the stores near their homes, because many customers are used to buying from the nearest stores, where they will also be able to see our device. Then a buyer will surely become a loyal customer of ours, because he will find that the device allows him to pay bills to Enel, Romtelecom, GDF Suez Energy but he can also recharge his mobile phone or pay the bill for his landline. These services are now offered in the same place, without the payer having to go to banks or withdraw money from the card to then pay cash at the bank.
Our main advantage is that we have come up with a new TOP-UP service. For example, in the case of the PrePay card, if customers usually receive a code that must be entered into the phone, we offer a service by which the operator is chosen, the phone number is entered, and after the amount is entered into the machine, in less than 5 seconds the credit is transferred to the PrePay account. Both Rompay, Qiwi and Zebra Pay are going to develop more services than what already exists, so it will be possible to pay taxes and fees, traffic fines and more.
Also related to this topic, what conditions must a collaborator meet to be an EasyPay System partner?
As I mentioned, we started manufacturing the devices to reduce our costs. Now we collaborate with the dealers of the three companies mentioned above, but we also sell parts for terminals, and from March we will also have our own service to help customers who have already bought devices. This field is in continuous development, now only the big cities are covered and there are many cities that are not yet covered, such as Craiova, Brăila, Galati, Oradea, Buzău, Bacău, Vaslui.
EasyPay can help potential investors with the production of the machines, but also send a team to the city where the location is wanted to help with this. Furthermore, we can help negotiate with store owners to set a rental price. At the beginning, we paid a rent of 200-300 euros, because these devices were new on the market, which was a great difficulty for us. If in 2010 we had to explain to the owners the advantages offered by these devices, in 2013 we received many requests in exchange for paying a minimum rent. This business is primarily addressed to coffee operators as the main collaborators, who represent over 80% of the vending market. They already have a coffee machine and a technician,
EasyPay System is looking for collaborators all over the country to whom you offer a turnkey business through which your company provides them with a business plan and guidance in helping them start a business in the field of payment terminals. If you can give us more details.
To be as explicit as possible, please find below a Business Plan for an electronic payment terminal.
Business Plan – Electronic payment terminals
| Terminal acquisition cost | 5,900 Lei |
| Value of transactions (mobile operators)/day | 400 lei |
| Value of transactions (mobile phone operators)/month | 400 x 30 = 12,000 lei |
| Commission % + exchange rate difference commission (mobile phone operators) | 12,000 x 7% = 840 Lei |
| Commission other operators (Enel, GDF Suez, Paysafecard, Avon, etc. collections) | 100 lei |
| Rent terminal space | 200 lei |
| GPRS services + thermal rollers | ~ 27 Lei |
| Other operational expenses (accounting, technician and collection services – minimum 30 terminals) | 80 lei |
Total per month/terminal: (840+100) – (200+27+80) = 633 Lei
In conclusion, for a purchase of 5,900 lei per electronic payment terminal, the above calculations show that:
The maximum investment recovery period is a maximum of 9-10 months .
The above analysis is based on the evolution of EasyPay System SRL transactions from 2013. The monthly growth recorded during this period is 5-8%.
Additional profit:
- Advertising services on the surface of the terminals,
- Advertising services on the second monitor.
Please tell what are the advantages of a long-term cooperation with EasyPay System?
The main advantage for the collaborator is that he receives a “turnkey” business, which is a strong point for those who already work in the field, know the vending industry and know what a banknote acceptor means. Also, the customer gets the device at a very good price and our support in communication with the retail market and in terms of the technical side. We therefore cover the logistics and the communication with those who host the terminals, but also the small inconveniences that occur in the technical field. When the customer chooses EasyPay System, we establish a business plan together and think of a vision. In addition, we help the client to orient themselves in choosing a region by guiding them to areas where this niche would work.
On the retail side, we help negotiate the lowest possible rent and start a training to use the machine, regarding the acceptor, printer and how the components work as a whole. We further guide him in installing the device – it must be placed towards the exit, with a certain orientation and have a certain color (red or orange, depending on the region). We then explain how to motivate employees to help customers use the machine and how to promote this service. Depending on the budget that a client initially communicates to us, we guide them towards choosing a certain strategy and provide them with the necessary technical support. The fact that we have a mobile team allows us to accompany the customer on the ground. Basically, we offer the expertise accumulated over 4 years of experience,
The EasyPay System terminal is also an ideal support for indoor and outdoor advertising through video spots. Please give us more details about the advantages of promotion through terminals.
Indoor or outdoor advertising brings the possibility of additional income. Our devices can also be equipped as a second monitor, on which advertising materials can run. Thus, we can collaborate with manufacturers who have the advantage of being able to promote their products in this way. For the devices in stores, this strategy involves placing them towards the exit, so that they are visible to those leaving the store, and the street devices are also visible due to the high pedestrian traffic. This fact translates into a high profit for companies that own a device.
What are the future projects of EasyPay System?
Regarding the future plans, we propose to introduce a new system that involves the integration of the coffee machine and the payment terminal in a single machine. This type of machine will be introduced in September or even earlier, and customers will be able to pay their bills while buying a coffee from such a machine. We also foresee an increase in our own network and production. For now, the market is free in this segment, which is still in development. Another goal is to attract more partners to help grow this industry.