Thanks to a joint project by Center-invest Bank, the technology company INPAS, and Don State Technological University, visitors to Rostov Zoo can now purchase tickets from a robot cashier.

The Waybot robot cashier was developed by graduates and students from Don State Technological University. Center-invest Bank set up its payment functions, and INPAS supplied the equipment and software.

"Selling tickets via the zoo’s website will help to reduce queues at the tills, and also allow visitors to experience cutting-edge technology," said the zoo’s director, Alexander Zhadobin. "Our team is endeavouring to make the zoo mobile and convenient for visitors, and I think the robot will become a favourite with the public."

The robot sells tickets to customers who are paying by card, and it prints tickets purchased online. It can also recognise and analyse users’ speech.

"The project has undoubtedly improved the customer experience for visitors to the zoo, with quick and convenient cashless payments for tickets," said INPAS Product Manager, Angela Petrukhnova. "The robot cashier has already become part of Rostov-on-Don’s new urban environment. We are happy to support such initiatives, especially as the majority of visitors to the zoo are children."

Experts from Center-invest Bank integrated a payment module into the robot and configured it for the fastest possible payment by bank cards from any payment system.

"The robot cashier will help the zoo to save money on staffing tills and banking cash, and it will also improve the quality of the ticket sales process: a robot works faster, does not get tired or make mistakes, and it is always in a good mood," says Center-invest Bank’s Director of Innovation, Yuri Bogdanov.

Center-invest Bank is a reliable partner for innovation in the financial sector. It is continually improving its existing services and creating new financial products for its customers, on the basis of reliable and modern IT solutions.

Center-invest Bank, established in 1992 in Rostov-on-Don, is one of the leading regional banks in Russia. It ranks in the top ten Russian banks by volume of SME lending, and is a market leader for financing women’s enterprise, social enterprise and start-ups. It has 127 branches in the Rostov region, the Volgograd region, Stavropol krai, Krasnodar krai, Nizhny Novgorod and Moscow.

INPAS is a Russian company founded in 1995. It is part of the multi-sector holding INLINE Technologies Group. INPAS provides payment services for banks and retail, and develops, introduces and supports payment solutions software. It provides banks with professional outsourcing of acquiring networks. It also supplies equipment, software and payment services. It is an official distributor of PAX and Verifone POS terminals. It is a member of the Association of Software Developers "Domestic Software".