Melisande Mual
27 Nov 2009 / 5 Min Read
Our mission is to sustain the development of the Romanian eCommerce industry, to be a trusted partner for the Romanian online industry and to put our experience, know-how and capabilities at the service of online shops and Internet users.
GECAD ePayment is part of the GECAD Group, founded in 1992.
Taking this Interview: Cristian Badea, CIO at GECAD ePayment Cristian has been in the GECAD family since the beginning of his professional career and is one of the founders of ePayment. Since 2006, he is Chief Information Officer and plays a major role in the development of the company, having a deep understanding of technology’s impact on business. |  March 2004 marks the date when the first transaction was made on a Romanian virtual shop, thus opening the first page in the history of online payments in the country. At the end of that year, Romanian shoppers had initiated 19,410 payment transactions on the internet reaching nearly EUR 2.33 million. Now (i.e. the first nine months of 2009) the value of online payment transactions via a credit card has climbed to EUR 69.5 million*, statistics indicate. In your opinion, which are the main factors which have contributed to the development of the online market and/or e-commerce in this country?
Cristian Badea: The country followed the general trend regarding Internet and credit card adoption. Internet usage in Romania is way above the world’s average penetration rate, however it is still below the European average, so there is still room for improvement. Regarding e-Commerce, main drivers for development are large corporations that have an online presence and have invested heavily into this channel. Banks also have a contribution, as card issuers and providers of eCommerce services, however, their focus has been elsewhere (loans, savings, cards). Integrators such as ourselves and, obviously, the press have also contributed to the development of eCommerce.
The Paypers: So far, how many Romanian online shops have selected the ePayment platform to sell their products online and how many transactions does it currently manage? What payment options does this platform support? Can you name some of your most representative clients? Cristian Badea: We have more than 1350 Romanian online shops, amongst which big names in telecom – Orange, Vodafone, we have major IT&C players, some of them selling exclusively online, such as eMAG.ro or PCGarage.ro, plus tourism agencies and local airlines to name just a few. In the first three quarters of 2009, 784.000 successful transactions went through our ePayment system in Romania.
The Paypers: Your company has been active on the market for a while. Starting with 2004 you began to promote the Romanian e-commerce industry and to support online shops with integrated solutions. What obstacles have you encountered so far in meeting your objectives and what are your company’s main achievements? Cristian Badea: The obstacles we encountered were inevitable for an incipient industry. The main obstacle though that we are still dealing with is the fear of fraud. According to our estimations, as little as 5% of online shoppers pay online with a debit or a credit card, the rest 95% paying offline, either by bank transfer or cash on delivery. This is unfortunate, as Romania is one of the most advanced countries in terms of online fraud protection, for instance the 3D secure standard has been implemented here since 2004, as a European pilot. * These statistics have been released by RomCard, the Romanian provider of services for card payment systems Read the rest of this exclusive interview by taking out a free trial subscription to the Online | Paypers, one of our four premium publications. About GECAD ePayment Countries: MM Melisande Mual 27 Nov 2009 / 5 Min Read   The Paypers is a global hub for market insights, real-time news, expert interviews, and in-depth analyses and resources across payments, fintech, and the digital economy. We deliver reports, webinars, and commentary on key topics, including regulation, real-time payments, cross-border payments and ecommerce, digital identity, payment innovation and infrastructure, Open Banking, Embedded Finance, crypto, fraud and financial crime prevention, and more – all developed in collaboration with industry experts and leaders. Current themes No part of this site can be reproduced without explicit permission of The Paypers (v2.7). Privacy Policy / Cookie Statement Copyright |
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