Offline Terminals
Offline terminals are the software-based receiving components in resilient payment systems, an integral part of payment networks or integrated with merchant POS terminals. They represent an interoperable infrastructure of universal payment receivers, ensuring that payees, merchants, and any backend server component across the payment ecosystem, can seamlessly accept payments regardless of offline wallet type used by the payer.
Offline Terminal Infrastructure
Offline terminals are the software-based receiving components in resilient payment systems, an integral part of payment networks or integrated with merchant POS terminals. They represent an interoperable infrastructure of universal payment receivers, ensuring that payees, merchants, and any backend server component across the payment ecosystem, can seamlessly accept payments regardless of offline wallet type used by the payer.
Form factors:
can either be the payment network providers, payment service providers, or payment application providers, as long as they comply with standardized specifications.
are suitable for light-weight integrations (e.g., mobile app-based solutions) for merchants or person-to-person payments.
are dedicated physical POS devices for larger merchants or institutions performing high volumes of offline transactions.
Offline Payments in an Online World
The Reserve, Pay, and Settle approach augments any payment network by leveraging online settlement of Digital IOUs rather than relying on adjunct reconciliation of offline payments. The modularity of this unique approach combines the issuing and acquiring separation found in EMVCo card payments with the programmable flexibility of Ethereum smart contracts, delivering a comprehensive framework for secure, interoperable and resilient payments.
The Reserve, Pay, and Settle approach optimizes offline payments by leveraging existing rails rather than relying on separate reconciliation layers:
Pre-authorizing funds ensures trust without immediate backend connectivity.
Enable secure offline transactions validated by terminals.
Offline transactions are reconciled through online settlement structures, preventing fraud and enhancing efficiency.
Offline Payment Demos
Proximity Offline Payments
Using QR
Using QR and Bluetooth
Using QR and ultrasound
Using NFC and Bluetooth
Consecutive offline payment
Using QR and Face ID
Remote Offline Payments
Using telecom
Interoperable payments networks enabled by offline payments:
A layer-2 solution with offline clearance and online settlement
Crunchfish’s deep fintech provides several generalizations of the successful legacy card payment model. Payment applications can be trusted offline and transact offline without credit risk, as there is a stored value in the offline wallet. Transactions are not limited to a single card network, such as MasterCard or VISA, as it possible to pay offline and be interoperable on any payment scheme, i.e. Real-Time Payments, CBDCs, Stablecoins, Mobile Money, Cryptocurrencies, etc, and even EMVCo Card Payments. Like EMVCo systems, the modular design separates terminals and wallets, ensuring interoperability and standardization.
– EMV Terminal Infrastructure: In EMVCo systems, acquiring terminals ensure that payments can be received universally across the ecosystem. Similarly, the Offline Terminal Infrastructure serves as the foundational component for receiving payments, validating payer-side interactions securely and reliably.
– Card Issuance Model: EMVCo chips or cards from financial providers function as standardized payment origination tools. Similarly, Offline Wallets are the tools for initiating offline payments, provided as secure, standardized solutions aligned to payment network specifications.
– Standardization and Interoperability: EMVCo’s specification enables issuers, acquirers, and merchants to operate on common standards. Similarly, this modular offline system ensures that terminals and wallets stay interoperable regardless of provider or user preference.
The benefits are a clear modular separation between receiving and paying components reduces implementation complexity and standardized specifications (e.g., for offline terminals and offline wallets) that foster competition and innovation within the ecosystem.
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