There’s more to the sharing economy than Uber and AirBnB. In fact, there’s a P2P marketplace for every niche. But these smaller marketplaces have a payment problem. It’s complex to manage millions of small transactions. This is why DOCOMO Digital launched NOMO. Hiroyuki Sato, CEO of DOCOMO Digital, explained the service to MEF Minute…
“The sharing economy is commerce with the promise of a human connection. We think of the big guys like Uber and AirBnB, but everyone can be a vendor of any kind. They can contribute to society. It’s a really important aspect of the future. And NOMO is helping with this evolution.”
This is Hiroyuki Sato, CEO of DOCOMO Digital, at the Money 20/20 expo last week. He’s stating the case for the company’s new pitch at sharing economy marketplaces: NOMO.
It’s a bold move, given that most observers know DOCOMO Digital best as a provider of carrier billing for digital businesses.
But here’s the thing. DOCOMO Digital has an EU e-money licence. That gives the firm the ability to manage a fund of electronic money (just like a bank, but it can’t lend or borrow). It can take in and pay out across a variety of payment methods.
Now, who might benefit from such a service? Obviously, the growing number of peer-to-peer marketplaces appearing across Europe. Especially in light of the imminent Payment Services Directive 2 legislation.
“Before, the marketplaces collected money from buyers and distributed it to sellers,” says Sato. “But PSD2 is requesting that marketplaces have an money e-money licence. For the small and medium sized marketplaces, this is a pain point. And it’s where we can help.”
If the analysts are right, the sharing economy is set to play a huge role in the global economy. According to Brookings, it will grow from $14 billion in 2014 to $335 billion by 2025.
PSD2 is requesting that sharing economy marketplaces have an money e-money licence. For the small and medium sized marketplaces, this is a pain point. And it’s where we can help.”
DOCOMO Digital believes the current market works well for consumers, but vendors need a better system for managing funds and pay outs.
Thus, NOMO will integrate into any marketplace transaction system, and then automate pay-outs to vendor’s wallets. Users can keep track of their funds and transactions using the NOMO mobile app, spend their balance, as well as receive tailored offers from partnering marketplaces.
The subscription-based service works with any traditional online payment solution. And thanks to the e-money licence, DOCOMO Digital can build in important security and KYC features.
Sato says: “The ability for vendors to spend their wallet’s balance without having to pay a fee should unlock new opportunities to this ecosystem by creating a close loop effect between participants. NOMO can be a particle accelerator for sharing economy stakeholders.”
