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One of the many offshoots of the internet’s growth is an increase in the number of payment providers out there. Where once Visa, PayPal, and Mastercard dominated, alternative companies such as Skrill, Neosurf, and even Apple Pay now offer similar and even better services to customers around the world. After all, what works best for people in Canada doesn’t always exist in Africa, Asia, or Europe.
This vast landscape of providers can prove a bit of a stumbling block for small businesses trying to get their hooks into a local market. Visa and Mastercard are still the largest processors out there (and, therefore, essential partners for companies of any size) but it can seem like there’s no obvious reason to choose many others, other than the geographical restrictions mentioned above.
So, what payment providers should Canadian businesses aim to incorporate into their business?
Any conversation about payments should begin with the nature of the industries involved. For instance, any company that works with in-person, point-of-sale commerce (e.g. clothing, food, and sports goods) would benefit from a combined offering like Square, which can take payments over the counter. In contrast, direct debits and similar subscriptions are much more the domain of Rotessa and Recurly.
Some unique case studies for payments come from the gaming industry, where the PC storefront Steam offers providers on a country-by-country basis, producing 249 different sets of card processors. Of course, there are plenty of gaming outlets that operate locally too. Canadian transfer company Interac is a well-known partner in the online casino CA sector, working with brands like MegaRush.
MegaRush also gives customers the option to deposit and withdraw with Neosurf, Visa, MuchBetter, ecoPayz, and Jeton, all of which serve a purpose. Interac lets players transfer funds with email and text messages, while MuchBetter is a peer-to-peer platform that is free to use. Combining all these processors means that companies can appeal to people of different socio-economic statuses.
The obvious question to ask is whether there’s much of a distinction between the payment methods favoured by larger businesses and those beloved by smaller enterprises. The answer is, unfortunately, yes. Major banks naturally have an inclination toward corporations, something that reportedly led to the creation of Plooto, an accounts payable/receivable company for small businesses.
As hinted at above, the upside of this apparent bias is that a number of e-commerce companies exist to serve small and medium businesses almost exclusively, like WordPress and Shopify. In the latter case, access to more than 80 different processors is included in its toolset, including PayPal, Klarna, and Paysafe. WordPress works with WooCommerce to add PayPal, Alipay, Stripe, and Square to websites.
Finally, what about crypto? Increasingly, there’s no need to provide a separate payment processor for Bitcoin and other tokens, as transactions can be settled by PayPal. Elon Musk’s former plaything lets customers buy, hold, and transfer Litecoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Bitcoin. It might take a bit more book-learning than the humble dollar to get going with crypto but, now, it’s more accessible for small businesses than it’s ever been.
(Bloomberg) — The head of the International Monetary Fund warned the US that the global economy is closely watching interest rates and industrial policies given the potential spillovers from the world’s biggest economy and reserve currency.
“All eyes are on the US,” Kristalina Georgieva said in an interview on Bloomberg’s Surveillance on Thursday.
The two biggest issues, she said, are “what is going to happen with inflation and interest rates” and “how is the US going to navigate this world of more intrusive government policies.”
The sustained strength of the US dollar is “concerning” for other currencies, particularly the lack of clarity on how long that may last.
“That’s what I hear from countries,” said the leader of the fund, which has about 190 members. “How long will the Fed be stuck with higher interest rates?”
Georgieva was speaking on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank’s spring meetings in Washington, where policymakers have been debating the impacts of Washington and Beijing’s policies and their geopolitical rivalry.
Read More: A Resilient Global Economy Masks Growing Debt and Inequality
Georgieva said the IMF is optimistic that the conditions will be right for the Federal Reserve to start cutting rates this year.
“The Fed is not yet prepared, and rightly so, to cut,” she said. “How fast? I don’t think we should gear up for a rapid decline in interest rates.”
The IMF chief also repeated her concerns about China devoting too much capital and labor toward export-oriented manufacturing, causing other countries, including the US, to retaliate with protectionist policies.
China Overcapacity
“If China builds overcapacity and pushes exports that create reciprocity of action, then we are in a world of more fragmentation not less, and that ultimately is not good for China,” Georgieva said.
“What I want to see China doing is get serious about reforms, get serious about demand and consumption,” she added.
A number of countries have recently criticized China for what they see as excessive state subsidies for manufacturers, particularly in clean energy sectors, that might flood global markets with cheap goods and threaten competing firms.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen hammered at the theme during a recent trip to China, repeatedly calling on Beijing to shift its economic policy toward stimulating domestic demand.
Chinese officials have acknowledged the risk of overcapacity in some areas, but have largely portrayed the criticism as overblown and hypocritical, coming from countries that are also ramping up clean energy subsidies.
(Updates with additional Georgieva comments from eighth paragraph.)
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
The head of the International Monetary Fund warned the US that the global economy is closely watching interest rates and industrial policies given the potential spillovers from the world’s biggest economy and reserve currency.
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Published Apr 18, 2024 • 2 minute read
(Bloomberg) — The head of the International Monetary Fund warned the US that the global economy is closely watching interest rates and industrial policies given the potential spillovers from the world’s biggest economy and reserve currency.
“All eyes are on the US,” Kristalina Georgieva said in an interview on Bloomberg’s Surveillance on Thursday.
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The two biggest issues, she said, are “what is going to happen with inflation and interest rates” and “how is the US going to navigate this world of more intrusive government policies.”
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Article content
The sustained strength of the US dollar is “concerning” for other currencies, particularly the lack of clarity on how long that may last.
“That’s what I hear from countries,” said the leader of the fund, which has about 190 members. “How long will the Fed be stuck with higher interest rates?”
Georgieva was speaking on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank’s spring meetings in Washington, where policymakers have been debating the impacts of Washington and Beijing’s policies and their geopolitical rivalry.
Read More: A Resilient Global Economy Masks Growing Debt and Inequality
Georgieva said the IMF is optimistic that the conditions will be right for the Federal Reserve to start cutting rates this year.
“The Fed is not yet prepared, and rightly so, to cut,” she said. “How fast? I don’t think we should gear up for a rapid decline in interest rates.”
The IMF chief also repeated her concerns about China devoting too much capital and labor toward export-oriented manufacturing, causing other countries, including the US, to retaliate with protectionist policies.
China Overcapacity
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Article content
“If China builds overcapacity and pushes exports that create reciprocity of action, then we are in a world of more fragmentation not less, and that ultimately is not good for China,” Georgieva said.
“What I want to see China doing is get serious about reforms, get serious about demand and consumption,” she added.
A number of countries have recently criticized China for what they see as excessive state subsidies for manufacturers, particularly in clean energy sectors, that might flood global markets with cheap goods and threaten competing firms.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen hammered at the theme during a recent trip to China, repeatedly calling on Beijing to shift its economic policy toward stimulating domestic demand.
Chinese officials have acknowledged the risk of overcapacity in some areas, but have largely portrayed the criticism as overblown and hypocritical, coming from countries that are also ramping up clean energy subsidies.
(Updates with additional Georgieva comments from eighth paragraph.)
Article content
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