Interview with a representative of the payment provider

Payments have ceased to be a "pipe" on the backend - today it is a strategic asset affecting conversion, retention and LTV. We talked with a representative of an international payment provider (below - Provider) about what is changing in the online payment market and what practices will become the industry standard tomorrow.

Interview

Q: What is changing the payments market the most in 2025?

Provider: Three things. The first is A2A/Pay-by-Bank: direct debits from the account reduce the cost of the transaction, raise approval and speed up enrollment. The second is payment orchestration: merchants dynamically route traffic between several providers according to risk rules, geo and issuing banks. Third - compliance automation: KYC/AML stop slowing down the business due to behavioral models and real-time risk profiles.

Q: Cards versus local methods and bank transfers - who wins?

Provider: Not "all or nothing." Cards remain strong in subscriptions and offline, but in e-commerce local methods and A2A take a share due to price and app. The mix wins: cards + Pay-by-Bank + key local wallets packed through a single orchestration.

Q: What metrics do you consider the "gold standard" of performance?

Provider:

Approval Rate (AR) by method/bank/geo/amount.
Cost per Approved (not to be confused with MDR): take into account retrai, fraud, support.
Speed-to-Wallet/Time-to-Funds - output speed to wallet/account.
Dispute/Chargeback Ratio and average resolution time.
Uptime/Degradations and SLA incident times.
KYC Throughput: share of auto app without manual review and average verification time.
UX metrics: drop-off in steps, one-click share, average successful payment time.

Q: What is payment orchestration in practice?

Provider: This is a layer of rules and experiments: A/B routing by providers, fallback during degradation, "bank matrices" (which BIN to lead to which acquirer), risk limits, time of day, amount, method. We see double-digit approval gains where there was a fixed provider prior to orchestration.

Question: Frode is evolving. What works now?

Provider: Behavioral models and device intelligence. We combine the link graph (device-account-card-IP), input speed, geo anomalies, failure history and signals from KYC. Plus - sanctions and PEP screening, monitoring of mule accounts, protection against "card search" and synthetic identities. It is critical to keep a low false positive, otherwise the conversion is lost.

Q: How do you speed up your payouts?

Provider: Two layers. The first is payment corridors: local rails, wallets, sometimes on-ramp/off-ramp for crypto payments, if allowed by jurisdiction. The second is prioritization and statuses: VIP channels, limits, instant recipient verification, transparent statuses "created → sent → received." This reduces the load in the support and increases confidence.

Q: How does merchant onboarding work?

Provider: Quick KYC/KYB collection, verification of beneficiaries, business model assessment, sanctions, geo-risks. Next - a technical pilot: the merchant connects the SDK/API, we configure the rules, run the A/B sand box, check the webhooks: 'payment _ initiated', 'authorized', 'settled', 'payout _ sent', 'chargeback _ opened'. The goal is to enter the food minimally invasive and with an understandable map of metrics.

Q: What about crypto payments and stablecoins?

Provider: They solve cross-border and speed, but are viable only with strict compliance and licensed on/off-ramp partners. We work where it is legal and apply the same AML/sledge screening standards as we do for fiat. The volatility circuit and the policy on the source of funds are important.

Question: Is geography important? Examples of differences by region?

Provider: Yes. In Europe, A2A and open banking are strong; in Latin America - local wallets and fast transfers; QR wallets and super apps are leading in Asia; in Africa, mobile money. In the USA/Canada/Australia, cards still dominate, but "pay by bank" is growing.

Q: How do you measure the contribution of antifraud to the merchant's P&L?

Provider: Watch Net Conversion: approved minus fraud failures and false failures. Plus, we consider Saved Loss (prevented damage), the cost of investigations and the impact on Cost per Approved. It is important to show the merchant a transparent report, where the contribution of each rule and model is clear.

Question: What mistakes do merchants most often make when choosing a payment stack?

Provider: Three. 1) Evaluate only the MDR/fee, not the value of the approved transaction. 2) Ignore local methods (and lose approval in key countries). 3) Rely on one provider without orchestration and failover.

Question: What is important in the UX part?

Provider: Minimum steps, autosave methods (within policy), "invisible" 3DS/OTP logic, clear statuses, localization of currencies/languages, understandable errors and instant retrays. Any extra form is a minus to conversion.

Q: What does "perfect" integration look like?

Provider: A single SDK/widget with dozens of methods, flexible webhooks, transparent statuses, access to raw logs, a sandbox for experiments and orchestration rules controlled by the merchant's product team, not just findep.

Question: Where will the market come by 2030?

Provider: A2A will enlarge, local methods will become interoperable through hubs, stablecoins will occupy a significant share of B2B settlements in conjunction with banks, and KYC/AML will be mostly non-operator. Payment stack management will become part of product management.

Mini-case: how orchestration boosts apparatus

Initial: one acquirer, AR in country X - 78%, many "Do not honor" failures.

Actions: connected the second route, BIN-matrix by banks, soft 3DS, retrai via A2A, turned on behavioral biometrics.

Result: AR rose to a ~ of 87-90% in the target segment, Cost per Approved decreased due to lower commissions and a reduction in false refusals, enrollment time stabilized.

Checklist for payment provider selection

Coverage and methods: countries/currencies/limits, availability of key local methods and A2A.

Economy: MDR, FX, hidden fees, Cost per Approved, settlement-terms.

Conversion: AR by geo/banks/BIN, share of one-click, retray, 3DS/OTP flexibility.

Antifraud and risk: behavioral models, device fingerprinting, sanctions/PEP, velocity rules, false positive policy.

Compliance: KYC/KYB, log storage, reporting, RG functions (limits, self-exclusion - if relevant to the domain).

Technologies: SDK/widget, orchestration, webhooks, raw logs, sandbox for A/B.

Reliability: uptime, degradation, incident SLA, transparent status page.

Support: 24/7, dedicated manager, L1/L2 response time, optimization advice.

Data and analytics: event export, API for BI, split route tests, access to model anti-fraud metrics.

Frequent "red flags"

Focusing on commission without talking about net conversions and false refusals.

Closed "black box" of anti-fraud without metrics and explanations for deviations.

Lack of failover plan and degradation scenarios.

Slow or opaque onboarding, manual KYCs without SLAs.

There is no roadmap for A2A/local methods in key regions.

"Blitz" from Provider

One practice that has an effect literally tomorrow? Enable A/B routing by issuing banks and add a local A2A method in top markets.

Where does the conversion "leak" most often? Additional forms and unnecessary redirects, as well as aggressive anti-fraud rules without taking into account behavioral patterns.

The most underrated metric? Cost per Approved - she disciplines both product and finance.

The competitive advantage in payments consists of three elements: the correct set of methods (cards + A2A + local wallets), smart orchestration with transparent analytics and compliance reliability without UX braking. Those who manage the stack as a product - testing routes, reducing false failures and accelerating conclusions - win on conversion, economics, and user trust.