Payments solutions provider Magnati has launched a metaverse marketplace with a fully integrated payments infrastructure – dubbed as the region’s first of its kind.
The Magnati-MetaV, built on the Abu Dhabi company’s blockchain, will offer Middle East retailers a more immersive way of reaching their customers through co-created virtual stores.
Users will be able to explore, pick up, and purchase products across a mix of retail categories, the company said in a release, including fashion, groceries, gaming, technology and more. They can also buy tickets and sign up for virtual events.
The platform is integrated with traditional payment rails and gateways – meaning users can transact through their cards, wallets, and other digital form factors, the company explained.
“The future of payments is all about being frictionless. Payments will no longer simply be transactional or an additional step in the process, but instead, will interact with customers along multiple touchpoints in a way that saves them time and hassle,” Magnati’s chief executive officer Ramana Kumar told Arabian Business.
According to Kumar, the platform will help e-commerce merchants address problems such as high rates of returns and exchanges.
“We are transforming e-commerce from electronic commerce to experiential commerce, where customers can clearly visualise, feel and know what they are paying for; where merchants can break frontiers for new business growth,” he said.
Event organisers could also benefit from the platform, as it allows virtual events to be hosted, especially after Covid-19 accelerated the digital migration in many industries.
The platform provides users with “richer visual and sensory information” about their online purchases, Kumar said, alluding to a global trend that puts metaverse applications in the spotlight.
The Magnati CEO said the new metaverse platform complies with the “latest data security standard,” in line with local, regional, and international regulators.
“Payment security on Magnati-MetaV follows the same rigour as all our other offerings. As a leading payments company, the stability and ability to protect data on its platform are of the highest priority,” he said.
