What is Capitec VRP?
Capitec Variable Recurring Payments is like putting your bank account on file instead of your bank credit or debit card. It is an account-to-account collection mechanism that allows merchants to pull variable amounts from a customer’s Capitec account on a recurring basis, against a mandate that the customer authorises directly inside the Capitec banking app. Think of it as a modernised alternative to card-on-file — purpose-built for recurring and subscription billing — with a simpler mandate flow, lower cost, and digital bank-level authentication resulting in strong customer authentication. It allows customers to make subscription and recurring payments directly from their bank accounts, providing a secure alternative to using credit cards for services like streaming, mobile contracts, grocery delivery, and more.How it compares to other recurring payment mechanisms
| Capitec VRP | Cards | |
|---|---|---|
| Mandate authorisation | Customer consents in Capitec app | Customer consents to PSP |
| Dispute posture | Burden of proof on customer given strong consent | Burden of proof on merchant to defend chargebacks |
| Collection retry | Supported with merchant-initiated retry | Supported with merchant-initiated retry |
| Overall Cost of Collection | Lower | Low-Mid |
Capitec VRP vs. Cards
For merchants currently using cards for subscription billing, Capitec VRP eliminates card expiry as a source of involuntary churn, removes card-not-present decline risk, and avoids card scheme fees. Customers may also be more confident agreeing to recurring payments with VRP due to their ability to cancel at any time in the app. The trade-off is reach: this instrument covers Capitec account holders only. For full market coverage, pair Capitec VRP with card acceptance or other bank rails.How it works
Step 1 — Mandate setup (one-time per customer) Your customer approves the first-time payment and the mandate for subsequent recurring payments directly inside the Capitec banking app. The mandate defines the collection parameters: the merchant, the maximum amount, and the billing frequency. On approval, you can collect the first payment if due. Step 2 — Recurring collection On each billing date, you initiate collection via our API, or schedule it in advance with Moment Subscriptions. Funds are pulled from the customer’s Capitec account against the active mandate. You receive a real-time confirmation or failure status, and settlement follows Moment’s standard schedule. Step 3 — Failed collections and retries If a collection fails — insufficient funds, for example — you can retry the mandate. Step 4 — Mandate revocation Customers can revoke their mandate at any time directly inside the Capitec app. You will receive an error when you attempt to collect against the revoked mandate.Ideal use cases
Capitec VRP is well-suited for:- Subscription billing with variable amounts — insurance premiums, usage-based pricing, or any model where the amount changes month-to-month (e-commerce subscription boxes and regular goods deliveries, pay-as-you-go and on-demand digital platforms, and digital subscriptions (streaming, SaaS, usage-based services). See supported recurring intervals.
- Utility and telco collections — recurring obligation billing where you’re already running debit order or DebiCheck flows and want a lower-cost, lower-friction alternative for Capitec customers
- Buy Now Pay Later, repayments and instalment plans — where instalment amounts may change over the loan term