NMB Bank and PATA in collaboration with Visa Join Hands to Bring Easy Digital Payments to Nepal’s Tourism Sector
26th November 2025, Kathmandu
NMB Bank Ltd. in collaboration with Visa has signed an agreement with the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter with a goal to promote and expand the use of NMB SoftPOS.
NMB Bank PATA Collaboration
NMB Bank Limited has partnered with the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter to introduce and expand the use of SoftPOS (Software Point-of-Sale) technology within Nepal’s tourism industry. This joint effort is aimed at enhancing the digital payment infrastructure for key players in the tourism sector, including hotels, travel agencies, and airlines, which PATA Nepal Chapter represents.
What is SoftPOS and How Does it Work?
SoftPOS is an innovative payment solution that eliminates the need for expensive, dedicated physical POS (Point-of-Sale) terminals.
Technology: SoftPOS is a software-based application that turns any existing, NFC-enabled Android smartphone into a secure payment terminal.
Mechanism: Merchants simply open the SoftPOS application, enter the transaction amount, and the customer taps their contactless card, mobile wallet (like Apple Pay or Google Pay), or NFC-enabled wearable device on the back of the merchant’s smartphone. The phone’s Near Field Communication (NFC) chip securely reads the payment data, which is then processed by the acquiring bank (NMB Bank), making the transaction immediate and hardware-free.
Security: SoftPOS solutions adhere to international security standards, such as PCI CPoC (Contactless Payments on COTS), using encryption and tokenization to protect sensitive card data during the transaction, ensuring it is a safer and convenient alternative to traditional methods.
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Strategic Impact on the Tourism Sector
The adoption of NMB SoftPOS by PATA Nepal Chapter members—which include a diverse range of tourism stakeholders—is expected to bring about transformative changes in service delivery and financial operations.
Enhanced Customer Experience: For international tourists, the ability to use their digital card payments and mobile wallets directly on a smartphone is significantly more convenient and faster than cash transactions or searching for a dedicated POS machine. This ensures a smoother payment experience, which is crucial for overall tourist satisfaction.
Cost-Effectiveness and Mobility: SoftPOS drastically reduces the capital cost associated with purchasing, maintaining, and upgrading traditional POS hardware. For small businesses, remote trekking agencies, mobile vendors, or pop-up service counters common in tourism, the technology offers unparalleled mobility. Agents can accept payments anywhere there is mobile network coverage.
Expansion of Digital Acceptance: By removing the barrier of expensive hardware, the technology encourages a wider range of merchants, including smaller hotels and local tour operators, to expand the acceptance of modern digital payment methods across the entire tourism sector. This is vital for a country that relies heavily on foreign currency transactions.
Boost to Financial Inclusion and Digital Economy: The increased use of SoftPOS will directly boost digital transaction volumes in the economy. Furthermore, by making card acceptance accessible to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that previously relied exclusively on cash, the technology actively supports financial inclusion by integrating these businesses into the formal digital financial system.
NMB Bank, with its strong financial backing and expansive network of 202 branches, 184 ATMs, and 9 extended counters across the country, is well-positioned to drive the widespread adoption of this technology. The bank and PATA Nepal Chapter believe this collaboration will successfully make the Nepalese tourism industry more digitally advanced, aligning it with global payment trends.
For More: NMB Bank PATA Collaboration
