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Best-in-class merchant acquiring: how to shape your payment platform strategy for the next five years

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The Datos Matrix: Merchant Acquiring Software Platforms report, released in July 2025, offers a rare, data-backed view into how global acquirers are addressing today’s most pressing technology and operational challenges.

Drawing on extensive market research and client feedback, Datos Insights benchmarks vendor capabilities and proven business outcomes. This report offers invaluable guidance for tier-1/2 banks, processors, and fintechs looking to stay ahead.

Inside, you will find critical insights on market trends, technology priorities, and best practices to help shape your acquiring strategy for the next five years and beyond.

What drives acquirers’ choice of payment platforms: Datos Insights identifies the key technology trends and functional demands shaping vendor selection in merchant acquiring:

  • Complex ecosystems. The proliferation of intermediaries demands real-time, multi-party clearing and settlement capabilities.

  • Universal payments. Acquirers must support a growing range of payment methods, from A2A and domestic schemes to alternative methods and crypto. This is happening alongside the evolution of POS (NFC/QR) and new use cases in IoT and connected cars.

  • Omnichannel reality gap. Few providers deliver true end-to-end omnichannel capabilities. This limits merchants' ability to achieve a unified customer view and provide fully integrated services across POS, e-commerce, and mobile.

  • Business-critical real-time. The momentum of open banking and open finance, driven by real-time payment rails like SEPA Instant, PIX, and UPI, is fundamentally changing expectations.

  • Digital-first operations. The market now expects seamless digital onboarding and tight enterprise integration, including robust connectivity to ERP and accounting systems.

Insights from market leaders

The report reveals how best-in-class acquirers are addressing these needs by leveraging platforms with:

  • Unified architecture. A single platform that spans issuing, acquiring, and settlement, streamlining operations and data flow.

  • Unmatched scalability. Proven performance to handle tens or even hundreds of millions of transactions per day without requiring platform migration.

  • API-driven integration. Robust APIs that enable embedded finance and seamless connectivity with critical ERP and CRM systems.

  • AI-ready fraud prevention. Advanced fraud detection with real-time risk scoring across all channels.

  • Rapid innovation. Low- and no-code tools that accelerate new product launches and allow for quick adaptation to market shifts.

OpenWay: a best-in-class use case

Among the vendors evaluated, Datos Insights recognized OpenWay as a Best-in-Class provider. The report highlights that the Way4 Merchant Acquiring platform excels by combining a breadth of functionality with strong, measurable client impact.

Specifically, OpenWay was noted for:

  • Vendor stability: achieving the highest score in the entire study for vendor stability—a critical factor for long-term strategic partnerships.

  • Best functionality coverage: being recognized for delivering the most comprehensive functionality across key categories.

  • Best configurability and customization: offering the most highly configurable platform, providing extensive customization capabilities to meet unique business needs.

  • Excellent customer service: distinguished in the“Client service” category for outstanding service quality, hands-on leadership engagement, and responsiveness to reported incidents.

  • High performance: demonstrating high performance and scalability with a live instance processing over 60 million transactions per day.

  • Driving business results: helping large acquirers win new merchant business, improve operational efficiency, and accelerate innovation.

Plan your next move

Whether you’re rethinking your acquiring platform, expanding into new geographies, or modernizing to meet merchant expectations, the insights in this report can help you:

  • Benchmark your current capabilities against industry leaders

  • Identify gaps in unified commerce, real-time payments, and ERP integration

  • Prioritize platform traits that banks and merchants value most: modern UI, extensibility, APIs, and a visionary roadmap

Download the report now to see the full analysis, including technology trends, vendor comparisons, and practical strategies for future-ready acquiring.

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