Accounts receivable management, healthcare, education, and enterprise merchants are difficult segments to sign and serve.   Acquirers must navigate the perfect storm of regulatory oversite, complex integrations, and network risk.  Payscout embraced the complexity and operates within the ‘eye of the storm’ where they work with ease and calm.  In this interview with Payments Consulting Network’s Commercial Director, Ken Musante, Payscout’s Co-Founder, Cleveland Brown, discusses how their automated onboarding has served both their sales partners and end merchants effectively while assuaging the concerns of their bank sponsors.

KM: Please provide a brief high-level overview of your business

CB: Payscout is a modern payment platform with features designed to process more payments and enhance security — at lower costs. We make it easy to offer multiple payment options, including credit/debit cards, checks, ACH, and HSA cards.

KM: What payments services do you offer merchants and not-for-profit organisations in US?

CB: Our proprietary platform allows both merchants and customers to make payments and set up payment plans; and our automated solutions enable convenient communications through mediums including text, chat, IVR, web, and more.

KM: Are there any industry sectors or client types that you focus on for merchant services?

CB: We focus on Accounts Receivable Management, Healthcare, Education, and Enterprise.

KM: What do you see as your key strengths with respect to merchant services?

CB: We make it easy for software companies  to make payments a part of their service offering.

KM: What do you see as your key differentiators with respect to merchant services?

CB: We are market leaders in providing integrated payments in regulated industries, including healthcare, medical billing, and accounts receivable management. Our platform was built for ease-of-integration so that software companies such as customer relationship management (CRM) systems, enterprise resource planning (ERP) platforms, and more can offer payment processing via simple API connection.

KM: What were your key achievements over the last 12 months in merchant services?

CB: Adding and extending automation (for onboarding, risk assessments, and hierarchy-based controls) to our proprietary payment processing platform.

KM: What merchant services innovations do you have on your product/service roadmap for the next 12 months?

CB: We’re launching a proprietary, end-to-end platform for ISOs, Agents, and ISVs that features a merchant-facing online application, agent-facing portal, risk scorecard, and merchant control center. With full automation across the system, our partners can now feature payments as a service easier than ever.

KM: What industry changes or trends to do you see occurring over the next 2-3 years that will have a major impact on your business and/or your clients?

CB: Platforms as a service where CRMs, ERPs, and consumer engagement tools feature fully integrated processing.

KM: What key criteria or features should a business consider when evaluating payments service providers

CB: Compliance is first and foremost. The concept of “FinTech” combines Financial Services, which are rules-driven and require compliance with all relevant stakeholders within the ecosystem, with Technology such that workflows, software systems, and automation add efficiency to the network. A business will inherently ask about the technology that a payment service provider is offering, but they should take it one step further and ask about the compliance, regulatory requirements, and rules that underpin the technology. The way a provider answers those compliance-related questions is the key for any business to make an informed decision about a new payment service provider.

Author: Ken Musante, Commercial Director, San Francisco, Payments Consulting Network

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