i2C Partners With Payfare To Pay Gig Workers

Global payments company i2c announced news on Tuesday (Jan. 30) that it inked a deal with Payfare, a provider of mobile banking and micro-lending, in which Payfare will use i2c’s Agile Processing payments platform.

In a press release, i2c said Payfare will use its service to provide customers in the U.S., Canada and around the globe with prepaid solutions. According to i2c, through its payment processing platform, Payfare enables transportation and ridesharing companies to pay drivers by loading their salaries on a prepaid Mastercard.

Drivers can shop in-store or online anywhere Mastercard is accepted. They can also withdraw cash from any ATM, transfer money and pay bills. For added convenience, drivers can access their accounts online or in-app via iOS and Android devices 24/7. The new service will be available for U.S. customers in the first quarter of this year.

“The payments industry is being driven by forward-thinking FinTech players like Payfare, and the flexibility of our single payments processing platform enables them to roll out truly innovative products to markets around the world,” said Peg Johnson, EVP of Global Client Success at i2c, in a press release. “We are proud to team with Payfare to deliver innovative, highly differentiated solutions that drive financial inclusion and empowerment.”

Citing a recent study by Intuit, i2c said around 34 percent of the U.S. workforce is now part of the gig economy, in which workers are employed as short-term and freelance employees. Paying these workers quickly and efficiently can prove challenging, which is where Payfare comes in.

“Our partnership with i2c will allow Payfare to deliver a flexible and cost-effective solution with a dynamic user experience for workers in today’s gig economy,” said Ron Hynes, acting CEO of Payfare. “As we expand our offering in the U.S. and Canada and plan for rapid expansion around the world, we are excited to have i2c as our strategic partner to provide the payments processing services to meet the unique needs of our customers around the world.”