Green Sheet interviews Stax Payments' Mark Sundt

As payments become increasingly embedded in software platforms, the transaction itself is fading into the background, shifting the industry's focus to what happens before and after the moment of payment. In this Q&A, Mark Sundt, chief technology officer at Stax Payments, discusses how this evolution is reshaping competition across the ecosystem.

From the growing importance of real-time data and post-payment intelligence to the role of agility among smaller fintechs, Sundt explores what it takes for providers to move beyond utility status and become integral to the full customer lifecycle.

Green Sheet: You've said the fight to "own the transaction" is over. What has changed in the payments ecosystem to push payments into the background of the customer experience?

Mark Sundt: We're seeing a shift in the software platforms that control the customer experience. Customers can now complete all of their payments on a single platform, making the transaction almost invisible to them. This kind of seamless experience and accessibility has become so normalized to the customers that the fight to own the transaction is over.

What matters now is who owns the experience around it. Whether it's tapping a phone, checking out in an app or having a subscription renew automatically, the payment itself disappears into the background. It becomes a mindless task for users. Because embedded payments, digital wallets, and AI-led commerce are becoming software platforms, consumers don't even realize they're making a payment; they are just acting.

For businesses, this fundamentally changes the competitive landscape. Payments are no longer a product; they are a part of an infrastructure. 

GS: If the real battleground is now the post-payment experience, what capabilities are becoming most critical for payments providers?

MS: Historically, payments were treated as a backend process function, where a transaction would be processed and then handled days and weeks later. Now, SaaS platforms and ISVs need immediate visibility into what's happening across their payment flows to monitor performance and make decisions in the moment.

There is strong demand for real-time reporting and AI-driven intelligence management to help businesses make smarter decisions after payment occurs. Embedded financial tools make these capabilities possible while also providing fraud prevention and data-driven insights for new business opportunities.

These capabilities are most critical as transactions become more embedded and distributed across different channels such as apps, in-person, and mobile. This post-payment experience allows businesses to gain a comprehensive view of the customers' and transactions' lifestyles and adapt in real time. 

GS: Payments data is increasingly described as a growth engine. How can businesses turn transaction data into actionable insights rather than just reporting?

MS: Rather than relying solely on past transactions to assess performance, businesses can monitor customer usage across channels and spending behavior to uncover new revenue opportunities. Operationally, this creates visibility across teams. Product teams can pinpoint where customers drop off in the payment journey, inefficiencies in checkout, payment methods and geographic performance.

The ability to analyze customer transactions and preferences in real-time allows businesses to make immediate adjustments, introduce new services and tailor marketing campaigns to drive purchases. At a higher level, predictive insights can anticipate customer needs, churn risk and future purchasing behavior. 

GS: Big Tech continues to expand its footprint in payments. Where do smaller fintechs still have a competitive edge?

MS: Smaller fintechs are quicker and more agile than larger fintechs that are operating on older, outdated systems. Because of this, they can efficiently solve niche problems and have the bandwidth to do more than just process payments.

Their strong infrastructure tools make it easier to integrate into SaaS platforms. Compared to larger fintechs, smaller companies often have a competitive advantage in their ability to stay nimble, allowing them to adapt to industry trends and regulatory changes within days.

Smaller fintechs' core advantage lies in their ability to offer real-time notifications of transaction events and provide superior infrastructure tools that support deeper integration, such as seamless connection into customers' agentic intelligence via Model Context Protocol (MCP) connections. This focus on real-time data and advanced connectivity allows them to do more than just process payments and stay ahead of industry and regulatory shifts by being nimble and adaptive.

GS: You emphasize trust and reliability as differentiators. What does it take to build payment infrastructure that merchants and platforms truly rely on?

MS: To build payment infrastructure that merchants and platforms truly rely on, we focus on the four foundational principles of modern payments. Security, compliance and stability are the non-negotiable foundations for trust, ensuring payments are consistently protected from disruption and fraud.

Beyond this essential base, trust is built on efficiency: we aim for a frictionless first transaction with streamlined onboarding for immediate activation; we provide accelerated batch to cash, giving merchants the fastest safe access to their revenue; and we deliver real-time month-end close data, ensuring partners and merchants receive critical operational and financial information in hours, not weeks.

This modern approach ensures that payments reliably fade into the background, translating directly to better merchant outcomes.

GS: Looking ahead, what will separate payments providers that remain utilities from those that successfully embed themselves into the full customer lifecycle?

MS: Embedded payments are fundamentally redefining the customer experience. The future of commerce demands that payment capabilities are not a separate step, but are seamlessly woven into the core of a customer's business process.

The driving principle is simplicity: any friction in accepting electronic payments—especially when compared to the perceived ease of cash—is a deterrent. To truly drive satisfaction and retention, we must eliminate this friction.

This seamless integration, which places everything from product selection to final payment on a single, unified platform, is the new competitive battleground. With the rise of alternative payment methods, including those based on stablecoins, our focus must be sharper than ever on delivering the effortless, contextually relevant experience the customer needs. Platforms that master this complete integration are those poised to dominate.

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