Intuit launches card reader in the UK

US-based payments software company Intuit is launching its mobile payments service for small businesses in the UK.

Intuit Pay, which was announced in November, lets businesses take payments face-to-face and over the phone using its keypad-equipped Chip & PIN card reader, which connects to a smartphone using Bluetooth.

After purchasing the reader for £49 plus VAT, businesses can download the Intuit Pay app on an iOS or Android mobile device to immediately begin taking payments. The app also features integration with Intuit's own accounting software, Quickbooks.

There are no monthly feeds to use the service, but Intuit charges businsess 2.75% per transaction.

Payments boom

Intuit Pay goes up against a handful of other mobile payment solutions in the European market, including mPowa, which charges a flat 0.25% fee per transaction, iZettle (2.75%) and SumUp (2.75%).

PayPal's own card reader, PayPal Here, is yet to launch in the UK, as is the European version of Square, an equivalent device first launched in the US by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey in 2009.