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Insights and Expertise

Crypto enters this already sensitive
equation with an entirely different
risk profile. Since this payment
method is not regulated in every
country equally there is a huge
opportunity for regulatory arbitrage
and abuse of the system.

Often they do it without escalation, during routine
internal checks or risk recalculations. By the time the
business reacts, the reputation within the payments in-
dustry has already shifted.

The importance of a payment
and banking strategy

This outcome can be avoided with a payment and bank-
ing strategy that is built on structure, risk forecasting
and operational clarity. Even though everybody knows
fees are important there are multiple other areas that
need to be evaluated in order to avoid disasters.

Every payment method should serve the commercial
model, the product structure and the jurisdictional ob-
ligations. Random patching of methods, based on ease
or market trend, creates confusion across departments,
providers and compliance.

Payment and banking today impact customer experi-
ence, risk management, technology, product develop-
ment, data security, compliance, finance and more. It
should be considered a standalone function, an essen-
tial element of the business strategy, not just a part of
finance.

Better education needed
Unfortunately, the ones who manage payment and
banking tasks are not adequately trained to do so. Key
areas, such as how payments and banking affect tech-
nology, UX, compliance and other essential aspects
in a business are absent from accounting, economics
courses and MBAs.

Even worse, most high-risk companies are still rely-
ing on so-called “introducers,” or "payment experts" to
find new banks or payment providers for their risky
setup. Little do they know, but these resellers always
work on commission, steering clients toward the high-
est commission rather than finding the best option,
which is a massive conflict of interest.

The sad part is that often these resellers take no re-
sponsibility for their introductions, even though under
PSD2 they have to.
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