SafeCharge launches new marketplace payments solution

Payments services provider SafeCharge launched its ‘Marketplace Manager’ product on Tuesday, describing it as a single API-based solution to relieve “payment pain points” for marketplaces, while enabling them to remain in full control of operations and the user experience for both buyers and sellers.

The AIM-traded firm claimed it was the first solution to cover “all” payment functions a marketplace needed, from a white label onboarding seller process, to ready-to-use checkout pages, and pay-out to sellers in a fully compliant way.

SafeCharge said marketplaces were seeing “unprecedented” growth at present, with a study by the Ecommerce Foundation suggesting almost 40% of the world's online retail market would be controlled by marketplaces by 2020.

It said pain points for marketplaces ranged from cumbersome seller on-boarding to paying out in a fast and cost-efficient way, as well as accommodating local payment preferences of buyers, and meeting new regulations such as the European PSD2 ‘Revised Directive on Payment Services’.

Under PSD2, certain marketplaces handling funds from both a seller and a buyer would need a payment institution license.

"Marketplaces use a different model to traditional retailers that creates complexity and a plethora of challenges which the payment industry has been slow to recognise and address," said SafeCharge CEO David Avgi.

“Working closely with existing marketplace customers, we have painstakingly created a solution that addresses their major challenges head on, from operational control to regulatory compliance and bi-directional payments.

“A solution that allows marketplaces to meet complexity with simplicity, opacity with transparency and uncertainty with foresight."

Marketplace Manager covered all marketplace payment needs at once, the SafeCharge board claimed, leveraging the company’s existing payment engine.

Its fully outsourced API would take “full responsibility” for all payment regulation, relieving marketplaces of know-your-customer requirements at onboarding, the complication of becoming a 'payments institute' as well as descoping their PCI compliance liability.

Marketplace Manager would also provide a “seamless” onboarding process via an API, with sellers needing to provide a “minimum” amount of information while the rest of the KYC information and selection of a payout option could be completed at a later stage.

The product also featured “fully customisable” checkout pages, providing a localised payment experience,with a choice of the most popular local payment methods in the language and currency of buyers based on their location, as well as ‘one click’ checkout for returning buyers.

Upon the completion of a payment, SmartCharge explained that Marketplace Manager held the funds in a segregated escrow account until the service was fulfilled.

With service completion or product delivery, the marketplace would instructed - through an API call - to transfer payment from the escrow account to the seller, and the commission would be automatically paid to the marketplace.

Marketplace Manager also enabled payout through a “large range” of local and international payment options, the board claimed.

In addition to bank transfers, sellers could be paid instantaneously via prepaid debit cards, credit transfer on a credit card or via popular e-wallets.