Ecommpay launches QR code payments for small businesses

Ecommpay has launched a QR code payment product for small businesses, aimed at one-off payments such as tips, donations and ad hoc purchases.

The product uses a single static QR code that merchants can place on printed signs, receipts or web pages. Customers scan the code to open a hosted payment page, where they can enter an amount or choose from preset values before paying with one of the payment methods available through Ecommpay.

The tool is designed for smaller merchants that may not have the technical resources to build payment links or integrate software. The QR code can be created, customised and published from the dashboard without coding or development work.

This targets a part of the market where informal or low-value transactions often still rely on cash. Examples include restaurants collecting tips, charities seeking donations and traders selling at temporary venues such as markets or fairs.

How It Works

Merchants can set payment amounts in three ways: customer-entered amounts only, preselected amounts only, or preselected amounts with a customer-entered option. The same QR code remains active until the merchant chooses to deactivate it.

The payment page can also be tailored with branding elements including a logo, background image, title, description, action button text and thank-you page. Management of the QR code lifecycle, including creation, download and deactivation, is limited to merchant administration and operations roles.

The product supports 3DS authentication and address verification service checks. It also works with payment methods already available on the Ecommpay platform.

One focus of the launch is the decline in cash use, which has affected spontaneous payments such as gratuities and small charitable gifts. By using a reusable QR code rather than a payment terminal, merchants and charities can accept digital payments in places where cash once filled that role.

Artus Zaremba, Head of Payment Solutions at Ecommpay, outlined the intended use cases for the product.

"We have built QR Code Payments to make it quick and simple to send one-off payments," said Artus Zaremba, Head of Payment Solutions at Ecommpay.

"It provides a simple solution for small or micro-businesses to accept payments without using a card machine - for example, pay-as-you-go bootcamp sessions in the local park, or selling goods at a farmers' market or school fair. The merchant can choose whether they or the customer sets the amount and which payment methods are made available. They also set the look and feel of the payment page, giving them control over their brand experience. The same QR code can be used indefinitely until the merchant chooses to deactivate it," Zaremba said.

Small Business Push

The launch sits within Ecommpay's broader offer for smaller merchants in the UK. That programme is available to UK-registered businesses selling goods or services online that have traded for at least six months and have annual revenue below EUR €2 million.

Ecommpay was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in London. It provides payment acquiring and processing services and offers more than 100 payment methods through a single platform.

Its small business offer is intended to let eligible merchants start accepting payments within hours of completing onboarding, though access remains subject to regulatory checks including identity verification, anti-money laundering screening and business assessment.

For small merchants, the appeal of the QR code model is its low operational barrier. A seller can print one code once, keep using it for changing payment amounts and avoid the cost or administration tied to separate hardware for occasional transactions.

The launch also reflects a wider effort by payment providers to serve micro-businesses and sole traders that sit between informal cash trade and full eCommerce checkout systems. In that gap, static QR codes offer a simpler route to digital collection for merchants that need flexibility more than a complex point-of-sale setup.

The same code can be displayed across physical and online settings until the merchant deactivates it.