Financial services is an ever-shifting sector, which can be influenced by advances in technology, an increasing need for customer information security, and the demand for more convenient payment methods.

Banks need to be prepared for a variety of factors so that their technology enables both present and future use cases. This is why several banks have transitioned away from data centre-hosted platforms to cloud-based environments built on solutions such as Microsoft Azure. Cloud technology allows banks to improve their flexibility, scalability and security, while reducing costs.  

Paymentology uses a cloud-based infrastructure to enable banks, digital-only banks and financial technology companies to rapidly issue and process cards from anywhere in the world. We offer four products to suit any type and scale of business, from modern card solutions to complete financial processing systems that use hardware security modules for enhanced security.  

In addition, we are upgrading our security offerings with developments such as tokenisation, where sensitive data is replaced by a surrogate value known as a token, as well as 3D secure authentication that includes an extra verification step for card users. 

We offer our customers access to both dedicated and multi-tenanted platforms hosted on Azure services across multiple regions. They can then use the power of these servers to track their customer data in more detail, allowing them to offer personalised solutions and products tailored to individuals.  

One of Paymentology’s key differentiators is that we pass a large quantity of data through customer transactions without sacrificing quality. We do this by enabling real-time analytics so that customers receive more relevant personalised offers, both in general and at the point of sale (POS). For example, if a credit-worthy customer makes an expensive, one-time purchase that pushes them into their overdraft, banks can use our analytics to offer a split-payment deal immediately after authentication. 

However, our real-time analytics do more than just notify a bank about a payment, they also provide the opportunity to build a customer profile. Our rules engine can pick up very sophisticated behavioural patterns and alert our clients when their customers are doing certain things at POS. Instalment and buy-now-pay-later plans provide customers with greater control of their finances and these can be made readily available with real-time analytics. 

By mapping spending behaviour to such a detailed level, banks can provide valuable deals that are tailored specifically to their customers’ needs. Not only does this enable them to market all sorts of relevant opportunities – for example, discounts on sports clothing, travel insurance, or restaurant offers – but they can also build a customer-centric business by offering customers products and features they will love. Paymentology supports superior user experiences such as multi-account mapping so that customers can have greater control over their finances.  

Access to such valuable data also allows our customers to improve their fraud modelling, and reduce false negatives, false positives, declined and fraudulent transactions. Historically, customers had a card linked to a specific bank account. If they didn’t want to use that, they would need to move money from other accounts or request overdrafts, which would take time, effort and often customer support. Today, we empower our customers by offering them these features at the tap of a button. Multi-account mapping combined with customer profiling puts consumers in control of their own finances.  

Text BoxUltimately, customers want more information about their finances so they can better manage their spending. And whether that comes from a simple transaction spend label like groceries, personal care or bills, or a highly personalised real-time offer (like buy now pay later) as they are making their purchase, our platforms allow our clients to give their customers the complete control they are looking for.  

Rowan Brewer is CEO of Paymentology 

This article was originally published in the Autumn 2022 issue of Technology Record. To get future issues delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for a free subscription.

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