Payment processing is often viewed as a necessary cost centre. But with the right approach, payments become a strategic advantage that drives both customer satisfaction and financial performance.
💡 Key Insight
Airlines that optimise their payment stack see 15-25% reduction in total payment costs while improving acceptance rates by 3-5%.
What CFOs Care About
| Metric | Why It Matters | Typical Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Processing Costs | Direct impact on margins | 1.5-3.5% of revenue |
| Acceptance Rate | Failed payments = lost sales | 85-95% baseline |
| Fraud & Chargebacks | Direct losses + fees | 0.5-2% of transactions |
| Settlement Time | Cash flow impact | T+1 to T+7 days |
| Reconciliation | Staff costs & accuracy | 2-5 FTE equivalent |
The True Cost of Payments
The headline rate is just the beginning. Here's what the total cost really looks like:
Direct Processing
1.5-2.5%
FX Conversion
0.5-2.0%
Failed Retries
0.2-0.5%
Fraud & Chargebacks
0.3-1.0%
Operations Staff
0.2-0.4%
Total Cost
2.7-6.4%
Optimisation Strategies
🌐 Multi-Currency
Let customers pay in local currency while you settle in yours.
- ↑ Conversion rates
- ↓ Cart abandonment
- ↓ FX risk exposure
🔀 Intelligent Routing
Route each transaction through the optimal processor.
- ↓ Processing costs
- ↑ Acceptance rates
- ↑ Redundancy
🛡️ Smart Fraud Prevention
Block bad actors without friction for good customers.
- ↓ Fraud losses
- ↓ Chargebacks
- ↑ Customer trust
⚡ Auto Reconciliation
Match payments to bookings automatically.
- ↓ Manual errors
- ↓ Staff costs
- ↑ Reporting speed
Before vs After: Payment Optimisation
| Metric | Before | After | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Processing Cost | 2.8% | 2.1% | -25% |
| Acceptance Rate | 87% | 94% | +8% |
| Chargeback Rate | 0.9% | 0.4% | -56% |
| Settlement Time | T+5 | T+1 | -80% |
| Reconciliation Time | 4 hours/day | 30 mins/day | -88% |
The Retailaer Advantage
✓ 100+ payment methods globally
✓ Built-in fraud detection & prevention
✓ Automated reconciliation & reporting
✓ PCI DSS Level 1 compliance
✓ Intelligent routing for lowest costs
✓ Real-time settlement options
The best payment system is invisible to customers and transparent to finance teams.
Ready to optimise your payment stack?
See how Retailaer can reduce your payment costs while improving customer experience.
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