In the ever-evolving landscape of payments, it is crucial to choose a payment platform from a vendor that can anticipate and support future growth through innovative functionality. This choice is key for staying ahead of your competitors.
To illustrate the importance of choosing the right payment platform, consider the following scenarios. Imagine you’re expanding from debit/prepaid cards to credit cards and exploring becoming an acquirer or launching a digital wallet.
Or, perhaps you’re a payment processor serving large banks and want to attract fintech clients with appealing offers. You might also be an acquirer targeting global ecommerce, needing new pricing models, unique features, and specialised expertise.
Finally, you could be an ambitious fintech with an adaptable embedded finance solution, foreseeing the need for quick modifications or branching into new business areas.
So how do payment software vendors distinguish themselves in terms of flexibility?
Why flexibility is vital
Flexibility is vital in payments, given the dynamic nature of markets and emerging concepts like cloud, AI, metaverse, NFTs, and central bank digital currency.
Traditional methods coexist with Open Banking and Web 3.0, fostering intense competition. Businesses require software enabling swift product launches, high ROI, innovation, and market-aligned solutions to succeed.
This enhances their competitiveness through tailored solutions for unique niches.
What differentiates vendors and the flexibility they can offer
Many vendors look similar on the surface, but the way they deliver functionality may differ vastly. Much depends on how the vendor has developed or acquired its technological offerings.
For instance, consider how quickly and easily you can launch issuing or acquiring products. Make sure of your organisation’s ability to offer tailored credit card products and merchant services.
Can you effortlessly provide dynamic or multi-currency pricing as an acquirer? Are unique payment plans and online fee/commission calculations possible? To maximise ROI, choose a powerful and flexible platform with end-to-end solutions.
Beware of vendors with extensive portfolios that are actually a patchwork of acquired solutions. These can become outdated and lack innovation, requiring new development or additional solutions with coding customisations. This carries risks and support challenges.
Global payments software provider OpenWay prioritises innovation and have developed its Way4 payment software solutions in-house through a dedicated team. This avoids obstacles, higher costs, and longer timelines for implementing new services.
Additionally, focus on how easy it is to manage your business growth and consider the stability of the platform. Some vendors lack true scalability in their products, relying instead on extensive customisation through scripting and coding.
Over time, the product may deviate significantly from its original form, containing as little as 10% of its initial offering. Supporting and upgrading customer-specific code can be costly and time-consuming, jeopardising platform stability.
Ask if the vendor’s offering is a custom implementation differing from a main version line. Give priority to long-term stability, cost-effectiveness, and reliable support for your organisation.
Vendor principles that give companies flexibility and independence
Personalisation and customisation are vital in business, but relying on numerous variations of custom code is not the most effective approach. A single version line for all customers gives control over quality and security, and it enables instant delivery of all available features worldwide.
Of course, imposing the same behaviours and features on all clients wouldn’t be ideal. A highly configurable platform like Way4 platform allows each client to create their own unique offerings, including customised payment processors for the banks they serve.
Vendors must provide crucial flexibility for clients, enabling standout features and manageable customisations. The ideal architecture should allow changes driven by business rules and parameters, not code itself.
Balancing product development is an art. It involves creating products for continual growth that accommodate organisation expansion in multiple domains, ensuring competitiveness.
Flexible by design enables as many ideas as possible
OpenWay platform’s flexible design is highly impactful, especially for card issuers dealing with diverse inputs. Each issuer has unique product styles, target markets, and regulatory requirements.
Many migrate from legacy processors while aiming to retain established behaviours and achieve faster time-to-market for new features.
Acquirers require flexibility to swiftly release solutions, comply with regulations, and standardise offerings. They may adapt authorisation scenarios for specific segments like electric charging stations or enable multi-currency payments for merchants. SME merchants seek online and instantaneous settlement.
Fintechs need freedom to adapt and innovate without limitations. OpenWay allows companies to independently modify and adapt their offerings, reducing reliance on external factors.
This fosters in-house expertise and enables unique services. With OpenWay platform’s high availability, one is free to focus on selling and perfecting their UX and analytics.
OpenWay prioritises a data model that accommodates diverse business ideas, empowering clients to implement on their own. This approach will allow each company to adapt and evolve quickly – and ensure they are not dependent on external factors for essential features.
Find out more about OpenWay’s Way4 digital payment software platform here.