The cross-border acquiring platform ready for CBDC, GenAI and more

The website of OpenWay’s client Nexi Group, which manages 2M merchants in over 25 countries, describes its business as: "European by scale, local by nature". This characterization captures the dual expectations that large cross-border acquirers are determined to fulfill. Beyond scalability, their processing platform must support the diversity of local requirements across all business geographies. Merely accepting domestic card schemes and country-specific alternative payments isn’t enough.

How can acquirers ensure a localized, personalized experience for each merchant, while increasing the profitability of their portfolio? We have analyzed the best practices of global e-commerce processors Shift4 and DNA Payments, pan-European paytech Nexi, pan-African player Equity Bank Group, Halyk Bank serving merchants across Central Asia, and others. All these companies rely on our Way4 Acquiring software platform and its unique, real-time front-to-back processing architecture.

Fast-to-market innovations

We see leading cross-border acquirers aligning well with Gartner’s 2024 list of top technology trends for payments. Although retail CBDC is marked as yet to be assessed by CIOs, this technology is already live for select financial institutions. Last year Halyk Bank, the pioneer of QR payments for SMEs across Central Asia, became an early-bird acquirer of Eurasia’s first CBDC cards.

AI-based fraud prevention is being adopted across multiple geographies and scenarios. Nexi has integrated machine learning into its core operations, while Network International has selected Mastercard’s Brighterion platform. For the benefit of OpenWay clients, Way4 can exchange consolidated, comprehensive transaction data with the AI engine in real time, based on which AI improves its detection algorithms and reduces false positives. If it sends a newly calculated risk score back to the processing platform, Way4 can instantly adjust its own payment authorization scenarios.

OpenWay was among the first payment industry vendors to implement a fail-safe architecture resilient to regional infrastructure malfunctions and shutdowns. It directly contributes to high conversion rates for acquirers and their merchants. This reliability is one of the factors that help Shift4, a global processor with $260B+ in total volume, remain a preferred payment partner for Starlink, Hilton, Kiwi and other marquee brands. Ilya Dubinsky, VP CTO Office at Shift4, explains: “We have a distributed infrastructure with active-active data centers that provide services from two different points globally. It contributes to the payment speed, because wherever the merchant is located, they get a local connection. One of the things that powers it is the high availability framework that we have on the Way4 platform.”

The high availability benefit is also enjoyed by our clients who implement Way4 in the cloud or as dedicated SaaS.

Personalized pricing, accounting and settlement

Personalized payment acceptance at low cost is a strong competitive advantage, yet tricky to achieve in cross-border acquiring. Pricing expectations vary from region to region and even between merchants in the same country. Some customers prefer the transparency of the interchange “++” markups, while others choose the blended pricing with simpler per-transaction rates for more predictable costs. Acquirers using Way4 get support for both pricing models. They also configure various rules to apply an optimal rate to each transaction in real time based on dozens of parameters.

Additionally, leading acquirers offer various pricing incentives. High-volume retailers appreciate dynamic discounts where their MSC rate is lowered instantly as soon as their transaction volumes in a given period surpass a predefined threshold.

For the merchants generating multi-currency transactions, the acquirer can offer to split the markup on FX conversion rates.

Sometimes what clinches the deal is the instant settlement option. For example, street vendors working on busy tourist streets depend on a predictable cash flow to replenish their stock in a timely way, as many of them operate with tight profit margins.

In all those cases, it’s critical for the acquiring platform to automate the related accounting, billing, and reporting.

Unlock new revenue streams with low TCO

According to a McKinsey survey, 31% of merchants are willing to pay for payroll solutions and access to borrowing. Acquirers can introduce these value-added services while keeping TCO low thanks to Way4’s pre-integrated modules for card issuing, BNPL, and merchant financing.

When merchants apply for cards and loans online, Way4 facilitates immediate approval or process them after mandatory checks by the acquirer.

A popular offering is a revenue-based loan where a merchant is charged monthly repayments proportional to their revenue for that specific month. The acquirer can readjust the terms of the loan for selected debtors, providing options such as refinancing or payment holidays.

Cross-border acquirers can also generate revenue by placing ATMs in their merchants’ locations frequented by tourists. This mutually beneficial arrangement increases the merchant’s cash sales while acquirers profit from ATM usage fees, including fees related to multi-currency operations.

OpenWay client Equity Bank Group, a pan-African player, benefited from being the world’s first ATM acquirer of M-PESA e-money. Today, its ATMs are also used for Western Union remittances.

Automated multi-country compliance

One of our clients, a payment facilitator operating in 190 countries and winner of the Best International Multi-Currency Business Payments Solution award, highlighted the challenges posed by different regulatory frameworks in different geographies: “In Hong Kong, we have a money service operator license. In Japan, it’s a funds transfer service provider license. In Europe, it’s an e-money institution, which also incorporates payment services. In the US, it’s an MSB.”

Way4 enables acquirers to configure and automate country-specific steps and rules. Our platform analyzes both real-time and historical data during transactions, much like an octopus with its 500 million neurons constantly scanning and mimicking its environment. This intelligent approach ensures that the most optimal scenarios are applied, and regulatory compliance is maintained.

For example, in Canada, merchants are allowed to add their own surcharges to card payments, except in Quebec, where this is prohibited. Way4 ensures compliance by automatically blocking surcharge application in this province.

In some European countries our clients have set up Way4 to cross-check P2P transaction participants against a P2P fraud database maintained by the central bank. If a match is found, the transaction is immediately declined. Moreover, transfer limits may vary depending on the country and the type of acquirer, which are easily configured on the platform.

Meeting customer expectations without compromise

Cross-border acquirers are facing the challenge of juggling numerous expectations. The advantages of leveraging innovative technology and partnering with an experienced team are well summarized by Nexi’s CIO Giuseppe Dallona:

Whether you are launching cross-border acquiring from scratch or expanding your existing business, we encourage you to consider OpenWay as your strategic partner in your journey!