Cashless payments at more hawker centres

By Cheryl Faith Wee, The Straits Times, 12 Jan 2015

MORE hawker centres here will allow cashless payment by the end of this year, even as its initial roll-out registers a lukewarm response.

Ten to 20 more food centres will offer Nets FlashPay, up from the existing three, in a bid to popularise card transactions in a largely untapped market.

"For quick service industries such as hawker centres, contactless payments provide speed, convenience and hygiene," said Nets chief executive Jeffrey Goh.

"For instance, it takes less than a second to complete a transaction at a stall - so, less time is spent queueing up and less manpower is required to man the store," he added, at the opening ceremony of the Bedok Interchange Hawker Centre yesterday.

But while more than half of the 70 stalls at the centre had Nets terminals installed last month, few are using them regularly.

Several stall owners had told the Singapore Bedok Town Centre Merchants' Association that fewer than 10 of their customers in a month paid via Nets FlashPay.

"Most people still want to use cash to pay. It involves a lifestyle change. Nets should have more advertising and promotion about this," said association president Khoo Hock Khim.

"Most hawkers do not really have the time to recommend it to their customers when they are busy running their businesses."

Madam Tan Kwee Cheng, 57, a cleaner who frequents the hawker centre in Bedok, said that while she is willing to try paying by card, she still prefers using cash, as it is more straightforward.

Hawker Poh Kin Hong, who is in her 50s and runs a drink stall, agrees. "Cash is still better, as we must be very careful to make sure that the transaction has been approved when you pay with the card," she said.

The system is "quite troublesome" to hawker Angela Lee, 58, who works at a char kway teow stall.

The two other hawker centres which allow customers to foot the bill this way are Beo Crescent Market and Food Centre and Clementi 448 Market and Food Centre.

More than half of the stalls at each of the centres have Nets FlashPay terminals.

Nets asked 30 consumers at the food centre in Clementi whether they would try using FlashPay at their next visit, and 27 said they would. Thirteen stall owners there also said they actively tried to promote it to their customers.

Contactless payment is still in its infancy in Singapore, with a low penetration rate of 30 per cent, said Mr Goh.

In Scandinavia, for example, 85 per cent of transactions at wet markets are done via cards, he said.

"We have built the contactless infrastructure and now it is time to encourage consumers to embrace contactless payments," he added.

Post by Ministry of National Development.

More space may be freed up for housing in Bedok
By Amanda Lee, TODAY, 11 Jan 2015

With the completion of the Bedok Integrated Complex in 2017, more space could be freed up for housing purposes, said Senior Minister of State for National Development Lee Yi Shyan today (Jan 11).

Responding to questions by reporters after the official opening ceremony of the Bedok Interchange Hawker Centre, Mr Lee, who is also Member of Parliament for East Coast GRC, said the existing Bedok Swimming Complex - which will be housed in the Bedok Intergrated Complex - could be use for housing purposes in future.

"I see potential for the swimming pool site (Bedok Swimming Complex) in future to be developed for housing," said Mr Lee.

The Bedok Integrated Complex will house Kampong Chai Chee Community Club, Bedok Sports Centre, Bedok Polyclinic an Eldercare Centre and Bedok Public Library.

Commenting on how the Housing and Development Board's Remaking Our Heartlands plans will change Bedok, Mr Lee said Bedok remains popular as a mature town.

"We often get request for people to want to buy resale flats here," added Mr Lee.

The new Bedok Interchange hawker centre has 70 stalls and will be able to seat about 1,000 persons. The hawker centre offers NETS contactless card payment to its customers. There are also five high - volume, low speed cooling fans and free wifi available at the hawker centre.