Merchants Look to Acquirers as Key Partners for Payment Innovation

Successful merchants provide what consumers want: seamless, feature-rich shopping across channels and devices.

This is where acquirers enter the picture. For smaller acquirers especially, this can be a tall order — and merchants seem to know it. Data shows that many merchants choose to work with large, well-known providers that possess the scale to build robust payments and customer experience solutions in-house.

PYMNTS Intelligence’s latest research finds that 10% of small acquirers, defined as those processing less than $1 billion per year, report high confidence in their ability to meet demand for seamless unified shopping. That compares to 74% of those processing volumes greater than $100 billion.

Despite these challenges, small acquirers can still play in the big leagues. The industrywide shift toward modular, third-party solutions levels the playing field and eliminates the resource-intensive need to build technology in-house. Third-party solutions offer compelling advantages, including ease of implementation, simplified maintenance and low upfront costs.

Inside “Bridging the Gap: Helping Acquirers Meet Evolving Merchant Demands”

The state of play for the digital payment capabilities offered by acquirers

Why large acquirers tend to have advantages — and how smaller ones can compete

How third-party solutions can level the playing field in fast-moving payment tech

Why faster onboarding and minimal downtime are crucial for acquirers

The role that technology is playing in rising rates of fraud facing acquirers

Download the Study Bridging the Gap: Helping acquirers meet evolving merchant demands

Acquirers that can help merchants meet their rapidly changing payment needs will get ahead of the competition. This report includes crucial information for acquirers as well as merchants who seek to understand the expertise that the right acquirers can provide in this area.

About the Report

“Bridging the Gap: Helping Acquirers Meet Evolving Merchant Demands” was commissioned by Visa Acceptance Solutions, and PYMNTS Intelligence is grateful for the company’s support and insight. The report examines the ability of acquirers to meet the increasingly complex digital payment needs of merchants. It draws insights from a survey of 200 acquirers across eight countries conducted from Nov. 5, 2024, to Nov. 22, 2024.