If you’ve ever stood in a grocery store checkout line clutching a fistful of cash, watched the self-serve terminal scroll through payment options, and wondered, “Can this thing I’m using to pay for milk send money to my cousin splitting a dinner bill halfway across the country?” — you’re not alone. As the owner and lead product designer for a payment kiosk supplier, I get that question at trade shows, from small business owners, and even from my teenage nephew who thinks self-checkout is just a fancy ATM. Payment Kiosk
Let me cut through the confusion: Payment kiosks can absolutely be used for peer-to-peer (P2P) payments — and they’re actually filling a gap in the digital payment world that most people don’t talk about. For years, P2P payments have been dominated by apps like Venmo, Cash App, and Zelle, all designed for smartphones. But what about the 22% of U.S. adults who don’t own a smartphone? Or the millions more who feel uneasy linking their bank accounts to third-party apps, or simply prefer handling transactions with physical cash they can see and control? That’s where payment kiosks come in — and that’s why we’ve spent the last five years engineering our kiosk line to support seamless, secure P2P transfers alongside their core functions like bill pay, ticket sales, and retail checkout.
First, let’s demystify what a payment kiosk is, and how it’s different from a smartphone or a regular ATM. When I started this company in 2018, I noticed a trend: Small retailers, laundromats, community centers, and even local governments were using standalone kiosks for tasks that used to require a teller or a cashier. Our first model was a bill pay kiosk, built to handle utility payments, phone top-ups, and parking fees for areas where staff was scarce. But within a year, customers started asking for P2P features. A laundromat owner in Detroit told me his regulars, many of whom were low-income and didn’t have bank accounts, would come in every weekend asking if they could send cash to their kids out of state to cover school supplies. A community center in rural Ohio said parents wanted a way to pay each other for soccer team fees without using a credit card — something they couldn’t easily do on their flip phones.
That feedback drove every part of our P2P kiosk design. We didn’t just tack on a Venmo button (which would be useless for people without smartphones). Instead, we built two main P2P transfer modes that work for every type of user: cash-to-P2P and card-to-P2P. Here’s how the cash-to-P2P flow works, step by step, because that’s what makes it accessible: A user walks up to our kiosk, selects “Send Money to Friend/Family” from the touchscreen menu, enters the recipient’s phone number or email address (we have a built-in numeric keypad and a large print display for users with vision impairments), inserts cash in any denomination up to $500, confirms the amount, and hits send. The recipient gets a text or email notification immediately, with the funds deposited directly into their linked bank account or P2P app wallet — no smartphone required for the sender, and no app download needed for the recipient.
The card-to-P2P mode is for users who do have a smartphone but prefer using the kiosk’s large, ergonomic card reader (we added EMV chip and contactless tap, plus a magstripe reader for older cards) over their phone’s small screen. A barista at a local coffee shop in Austin, for example, might use our kiosk to send her roommate $15 for rent split mid-month, instead of fumbling with her phone while waiting for customers. The process is similar: Select P2P, enter the recipient’s info, insert a debit or credit card, confirm, and that’s it — fees are automatically disclosed upfront, which solves another pain point with many P2P apps that hide small transfer fees until after you send money.
Now, let’s talk about security, because that’s the biggest concern for anyone handling financial transactions — especially when moving money between two individuals. When I tell people our kiosks process P2P transfers, the first question is always, “Is this safe?” I’d be lying if I said we didn’t test every security protocol we could get our hands on. Our kiosks are equipped with end-to-end encryption for all transfer data, so every keystroke, card number, and cash count is scrambled before it leaves the device. We work with FDIC-insured payment processors, same as the big banks, so all funds are held in regulated accounts during transfer — there’s no “black box” middleman. We also have built-in fraud detection that flags unusual activity, like a user sending $1,000 to a new number they’ve never used before, and prompts them to verify their identity with a government ID scan (we have a compact ID scanner built right into the kiosk) before the transfer goes through.
We’ve tested this with 2,000 users across 10 different locations over the past 18 months, and the fraud rate for our kiosk P2P transfers is 0.02% — that’s lower than the average fraud rate for Venmo and Cash App, which sit around 0.07% according to the 2023 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Data Book. Part of that is because we have a physical, human-monitored device in a public or semi-public space; if someone tries to scam you at a grocery store kiosk, there’s often a staff member nearby who can help, whereas a Venmo scammer might be halfway across the country.
That said, we’re not pretending kiosk P2P is perfect. There are limitations, and it’s important to be honest about them. For one, our kiosks only work for domestic U.S. transfers right now — international P2P is a whole different ballgame with cross-border fees and regulatory compliance, and we’re still working on that, with a launch planned for late 2025. Also, while the cash-to-P2P mode is ideal for unbanked users, it doesn’t work with coins (yet — we’re testing a coin validator that will roll out in Q4 2024), so users have to bring paper bills. And unlike apps, which let you request money from someone, our kiosks only support sending funds; we’re looking at adding a request feature next year, as long as we can build it without compromising security.
So why does this matter? Let’s look at the numbers. The Pew Research Center’s 2023 Mobile Fact Sheet reports that 97% of U.S. adults own a cellphone, but only 85% own a smartphone. That 12% gap translates to roughly 30 million people who are locked out of most digital P2P services. On top of that, 5.9% of U.S. households are unbanked, according to the FDIC’s 2021 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households — that’s over 7 million households that don’t have a checking or savings account, meaning they can’t use Zelle, which requires a bank account, and often struggle with apps like Venmo that require a linked bank or credit card. Kiosk P2P payments fill that gap entirely: A user doesn’t need a smartphone, doesn’t need a bank account, just cash and a recipient’s basic contact info.
I’ve seen this play out firsthand at the laundromat in Detroit I mentioned earlier. The owner, Marcus, told me that since he installed our first kiosk with P2P features, his customers have sent over $120,000 in transfers in the past year. “Before, people would have to drive 20 miles to a Western Union to send money, which cost $15 on average,” Marcus said. “Now they can do it here for $2 or less, on their schedule, no wait.” That’s the real impact of kiosk P2P: it’s not just a novelty, it’s a financial inclusion tool for people who have been left behind by the rise of smartphone-only P2P apps.
Of course, there are skeptics. Some fintech experts argue that kiosk P2P is unnecessary, that the big apps will eventually roll out support for feature phones or cash transfers. But I disagree. Kiosks are physical, visible, and placed in high-traffic, trusted locations — grocery stores, pharmacies, community centers — which makes them more appealing to many users who are wary of digital apps. A 2024 study from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) found that 62% of unbanked users prefer handling financial transactions in person, rather than online or via phone, because it feels more secure. Kiosks meet that demand: you’re standing in front of a machine that’s in a store you frequent, not typing numbers into a tiny phone screen in your living room.
We’ve also seen big players start to notice this gap. Last year, a major retail chain tested P2P transfers in its self-checkout kiosks in 500 locations, and the trial resulted in a 18% increase in foot traffic to those stores, because customers would stop by specifically to send money to family. That’s proof that kiosk P2P isn’t just for niche use cases — it’s a feature that drives business for retailers and value for consumers.
As a supplier, our job isn’t just to sell kiosks — it’s to build tools that solve real problems. When we launched our P2P feature, we didn’t do it because it was trendy; we did it because we listened to the small business owners and the regular users who told us they couldn’t send money when they needed to. Over the past two years, we’ve refined the kiosk based on that feedback: we added large print and audio prompts for visually impaired users, we lowered fees to a flat $1 per transfer for amounts under $500, and we added a “send to phone number” feature that works even if the recipient doesn’t have a P2P app, because we hold the funds in a prepaid card that the recipient can pick up at the same kiosk if they don’t have a linked bank account. That’s another key point: recipients don’t have to use a specific app to get the money, which is a big difference from traditional P2P services that lock funds into their own platform.
Let’s address a common myth: Some people think payment kiosks are just for big, corporate locations, so P2P would never work in a small space. We’ve built our smallest kiosk model, the Kiosk Mini, which fits in a 2×3 foot footprint — smaller than a standard self-checkout register — and can be installed in a corner of a bodega, a hair salon, or a small community library. The Kiosk Mini supports all our P2P features, so even the smallest local business can offer this service to their customers. We installed one at a hair salon in Cleveland last year, and the owner, Maria, told me her clients now use it to pay each other for split hair services, send money to their stylists for tip splits, and even send cash to their kids for birthday gifts, all while waiting for their own appointments.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: If you’re a small business owner or a facility manager, how do you implement kiosk P2P? It’s actually simpler than you might think. We offer turnkey solutions, so we handle all the hardware, software, security, and processor partnerships. All you have to do is place the kiosk in your space, and you get a dashboard to track transaction fees, monitor fraud alerts, and even set limits on transfer amounts (if you want to cap transfers at $300 instead of $500, for example). We also offer 24/7 on-site support for any technical issues, because we know a kiosk being down can cost you business.
At the end of the day, payment kiosks are evolving beyond their original purpose as bill pay and checkout tools. They’re becoming a universal financial hub that works for every type of user, regardless of their access to smartphones or bank accounts. P2P payments are just one of the features that make that possible, and it’s a feature that’s already making a difference for hundreds of thousands of people.
If you’re a business owner who’s interested in learning how payment kiosks with P2P capabilities could work for your customers, or if you just have questions about security, fees, or implementation, we’re here to help. We work with businesses of all sizes, from small local bodegas to large retail chains, and we can tailor a solution to fit your specific needs.
Self Service Kiosk References
FDIC. (2021). 2021 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households.
Pew Research Center. (2023). Mobile Device Ownership 2023.
U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. (2024). In-Person Financial Transaction Preferences Among Low-Income Households.
Federal Trade Commission. (2023). 2023 FTC Data Book on Consumer Fraud.
Shenzhen HDFocus Technology Co., Ltd.
Shenzhen HDFocus Technology Co., Ltd. is well-known as one of the leading payment kiosk manufacturers and suppliers in China, featured by quality products and good service. Please feel free to wholesale payment kiosk made in China here from our factory.
Address: 5th Floor, 51 Building, Bantian No. 3 Industrial Park, Bantian Community, Bantian Street, Longgang, Shenzhen, China.
E-mail: info@hd-focus.com
WebSite: https://www.hd-focus.com/
