Thredd Teams With Discover to Help Expand Card Networks

Global payments platform Thredd has launched a partnership with Discover® Global Network.

The collaboration, announced Wednesday (June 5), is in response to demand from Thredd customers seeking flexibility when creating new card programs, especially those who need the option for cross-border card issuance.

“Our recent integration into the Discover Global Network will allow us to develop additional revenue streams, access new markets for our clients, and support both our international expansion and that of our clients” Jonathan Vaux, head of propositions and partnerships at Thredd, said in a news release. “Our growing suite of partners is designed to grant clients financial flexibility to meet the personalized needs of every business.”

As Thredd noted in the release, Discover processes billions of transactions for more than 305 million cardholders worldwide, and is accepted at more than 70 million merchants and millions of additional micro-merchants connected to marketplace and payment facilitators.

In the months to come, the company said, Discover’s team will work with Thredd to let Thredd clients access this additional network, with initial development work including virtual card issuance with Diners Club International.

“This collaboration, following a string of new C-level hires, will also support Thredd’s international expansion, offering clients across Europe and APAC the ability to run card programmes on the Discover Global Network as they grow and expand their geographical footprint,” Thredd said in the release.

PYMNTS last week spoke with Ellie Smith, global head of digital acceptance at Discover Global Network, about the rise of unattended payments technology.

Using insights from “Unattended: The Payments Technology Shifting the Future of Commerce,” a joint PYMNTS Intelligence and Discover study, Smith stressed the role of technological advancements in allowing for more secure and seamless unattended transactions.

Also driving innovation in unattended payments: an increasing demand from consumers for self-service solutions.

“[You] have the payment technology providers and merchants who benefit both from speed and managing their employee base,” Smith said, ultimately creating a unique, “win-win situation” facilitating rapid advancements in the unattended space.

On the same day, PYMNTS spoke with Thredd CEO Jim McCarthy about his company’s push to remain nimble in order to navigate the regulatory landscapes of new markets, especially with its recent expansion into the United States.

“You look for the things that are, in my mind, universal truths,” he said. “Payments are about risk management, compliance, reconciliation — all that stuff. The stuff that doesn’t get talked about because we all like to focus on the user experience and the user interface. But it’s really the plumbing that’s the most interesting to me. Those that do it well and do it in a way that’s compliant and secure, that’s where the focus needs to be.”