Frequently Asked Questions

viacash is an independent payment infrastructure
that allows withdrawals and deposits of cash at the supermarket checkout via a barcode.
In Germany and Austria it is known as “Barzahlen/viacash” and already the biggest private infrastructure of its kind. With viacash, customers have the possibility to deposit and withdraw money from their bank account without a minimum purchase requirement. Furthermore, customers can pay their online purchase, rent or airline tickets with cash in retail stores.

 

Scenario 1 “Deposit”:

  • Customers of partnering banks want to deposit cash into their own account, so
    they generate a barcode in their banking app with the desired amount.

  • They then present the barcode on the screen of their mobile phone at the
    checkout when grocery-shopping and give the money to the cashier.

  • Customers will receive a push notification on their phone and the funds will be
    instantly credited to their account.

  • The cashier will also provide a receipt to the customer.

Scenario 2 “Withdrawal”:

  • Customers of partnering banks want to withdraw cash from their own account, so
    they generate a barcode in their banking app with the desired amount.

  • They then present the barcode on the screen of their mobile phone at the
    checkout when grocery-shopping and receive the money from the cashier.

  • Customers will receive a push notification on their phone and the funds will be
    instantly debited from their account.

  • The cashier will also provide a receipt to the customer.

Scenario 3 “Online shopping”:

  • The customer selects viacash in a participating onlineshop at the end of the
    ordering process.

  • As a consequence, the customer receives a payment slip with a barcode by email
    and prints it out. Alternatively, the customer can get the barcode via text
    message.

  • While grocery shopping, the customers shows the payment slip at the checkout and
    then pays it in addition to the normal purchase (optional, there is no minimum
    purchase obligation).

Additional scenarios that are already in use in Germany and that will be extended to
more European markets in the future are bill payment services, e-wallet top ups, emoney
and money transfer.

 

viacash is available in Italy, Greece, Switzerland and Spain.
Furthermore the parent brand “Barzahlen/viacash” operates in Germany and Austria, offering the
exact same service. The network of retail partner stores includes more than 1012 stores of PAM Group, including Pam Superstore and Panorama, 110 stores of Bazaar in Greece, 3000 Stores of Bonpreu and CSQ in Spain, 1600 ticket vending machines of SBB in Switzerland, around 2600 stores of Billa, Penny, dm, Merkur and Bipa in Austria and around 11.700 stores of Rewe,Rossmann, dm, Penny, real, Budni and more in Germany.

 

  • No need to search for an ATM. The basic banking needs can be easily met with
    viacash en route.

  • Combining online shopping with offline payment.

  • Benefit from the generous opening hours of supermarkets, drugstores, hardware
    stores (available only in Germany) and ticket machines (available only in
    Switzerland).

  • No disclosure of sensitive account or credit card information.
     

From a retail perspective there is a trend in
the retail banking world, which nationwide retail chains can leverage to their advantage
to drive more customer traffic to their stores. To put this into perspective: Retailers are looking for  innovations to provide
customers with relevant value-added services which can simplify and make their
customers’ routines more convenient and comfortable.

 

  • Customers of direct banks, since they do not have their own branch network and
    therefore the deposit of cash is usually not possible.

  • Young customers (14-29 years), as they often do not have a credit card yet, but
    still want to shop online.

  • Older customers, which mostly have a credit card, but are extremely reluctant to
    use it online.

  • People with low incomes, as they often do not have or receive a credit card.
     

  • Many countries in Europa like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Greece and Italy show
    particularly high cash affinity.

  • Consumers in these countries are withdrawing more cash than ever when on the
    same hand the number of ATM’S and bank branches are decreasing.
     

viacash is cooperating with various national and
international banks across different European markets. These include Sparda Bank, DKB, Fidor
Bank in Germany and Hype in Italy. The cooperation with N26 and bunq is available in
Germany, Austria and Italy.

 

In the DACH region, viacash/Barzahlen is used by
large organizations across different sectors including e.on in the utility sector,
Bundesagentur für Arbeit in the public sector, Rakuten.de in the E-Commerce sector and
Generali in the Austrian insurance sector. Partner companies from the travel industry
include Air Prishtina and Kosova Airlines in Switzerland.

 

If your barcode / payment/payout slip has expired,
please request a new one from the invoicing party. Neither the invoicing party nor viacash
can extend the duration of the slip / barcode.