How the digital revolution has helped real-time payments evolve into business growth opportunities

Consumers’ experiences of everyday transactions – from buying a cup of coffee in a cafe, a birthday gift online, or sharing the cost of a meal between friends – have been transformed in recent years by the digital revolution. This has led to rapid and widespread acceptance of cashless payments via an app or digital wallet.

Those providing such smart, electronic transactions, including merchants, retailers, restaurants, hotels and public transport providers, have had to act quickly to keep up with the growing demand among consumers. Customers expect the newest, rapidly evolving digital payment methods, which require advanced payment platforms.

However, electronic payment systems and the technologies that drive them are no longer a simple means of settlement. Payments have become a strategic business pillar. By leveraging connected payments technology, companies can increase revenue and also consolidate their suppliers and data streams, while increasing their customer base.

Merchants with a progressive mindset can capitalise on these opportunities by leveraging payments technology to achieve their goals. These benefits, and the associated risks of falling behind, are outlined in a new study, “Empowering New Business Innovations with Payments”, published by Nuvei, a Nasdaq-listed financial technology (fintech) company, in partnership with market research firm IDC.

Researchers interviewed industry leaders at large global companies across international markets to get their views on how they operate in the rapidly evolving payments landscape.

Adding and removing payments channels and methods can have a critical impact on a business, the study has found. “One [industry leader] said that activating new payment channels such as BNPL [buy now, pay later] yielded a monthly revenue increase of up to 32 per cent,” Juan Franco, Nuvei’s general manager for Asia-Pacific, says.