How Visa’s Certification Program is Empowering Payfacs’ Growth
Payment facilitators (Payfacs) are the unsung heroes of the digital economy, seamlessly connecting small and micro-sized merchants to the realm of digital payments.
As the digital economy continues evolving, Payfacs have emerged as key players, adapting to the changing needs of businesses. They simplify payment processing, providing an array of services integral to the payment ecosystem, while their rapid scaling is bridging the gap between cash and digital transactions.
The CEMEA Opportunity
Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa (CEMEA), home to more than two billion people, sees around 75% of transactions being conducted in cash, which presents a substantial $3-trillion opportunity.
To harness this potential, we launched the Payfacs Certification program a few months ago. With around 60 million untapped merchants in CEMEA, the initiative aims to empower payfacs, foster financial inclusion, and spur economic growth in a region where one third of the population is under the age of 15.
What Payfacs are Saying
Feedback from registered Payfacs has been overwhelmingly positive, with many attributing the certification program to enhancing their risk resilience and improving the sustainability of their daily operations. Additionally, they have provided valuable insights and feedback, enabling Visa to continually enhance the initiative.
Moreover, this certification program enables Visa to provide added value to Payfacs through various means, helping us refine our solutions by establishing new communication channels, developing educational strategies, and hosting relevant events tailored to the needs of Payfacs.
Examples of Tailored Solutions
At Visa, we continuously refine our products and solutions to meet the evolving needs of Payfacs. This includes simplifying existing offerings and introducing new solutions to better align with the requirements of Payfacs, paving the way for a new generation of clients to access these solutions.
For instance, Visa Decision Manager, our fraud management solution leveraging machine learning insights from over 212 billion VisaNet transactions annually, has been customized to better suit the needs of both established Payfacs and those at the nascent stages of their journey.
Throughout the certification process, we observed that many Payfacs have developed their own in-house fraud management solutions as alternatives to Visa Decision Manager. Drawing on our expertise, we can assist them in addressing any existing gaps in their in-house solutions and enhancing their fraud management capabilities.
Another example is the Visa Merchants Screening Service, which provides certified Payfacs access to a list of fraudulent merchants previously accessible only to acquirers. This service significantly bolsters the resilience of certified Payfacs' businesses.
Benefits for Certified Payfacs
With our certification, Payfacs can enjoy a range of benefits such as access to a vast network of acquirers and Visa Preferred Partners offering full stack acquiring capabilities and a variety of seller value-added services. Another benefit is access to Visa’s resources, consultancy and events, which can provide certified Payfacs with insights and guidance on the latest trends and best practices in the industry. Certified Payfacs can also benefit from specialized training and access to development programs that can help them improve their skills and knowledge and stay ahead of the competition.
In fostering the journey toward a digital-first economy, the collaboration between Visa and Payfacs is pivotal. Payfacs, the architects of economic transformation, play a crucial role in guiding toward a seamless digital payment landscape.
Interested in learning more about the Visa Certification Program for Payfacs? Visit our website at https://km.visamiddleeast.com/en_KM/supporting-info/visa-certification-payfacs.html