Executive Summary

The combination of increasing payment and operational digitization and rising merchant services satisfaction among small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) is forcing banks, acquirers, and fintechs to evolve their offerings. To compete in the crowded market—and earn the volume and revenue opportunity this customer base presents—merchant services players will need to ramp up innovation across payments, value-added services, and outreach and marketing.

3 KEY QUESTIONS THIS REPORT WILL ANSWER

1. How will merchant services providers be affected by changes in the SMB landscape?
2. Which classes of providers are best positioned to succeed and meet the specific needs of SMB owners?
3. What are key areas of innovation and best practices across payments, value-added services, and outreach?

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? Based on data and interviews with key industry figures, we evaluate the major groups of providers competing to serve small businesses, examine wholesale changes in the approach to SMB merchant services, identify specific areas of investment set to dictate innovation in 2022, and spotlight best practices for payment service providers (PSPs).

KEY STAT: Nearly 7 in 10 small businesses rank interoperability as “very” or “extremely” important, underscoring the benefits of an ecosystem-driven approach for merchant services providers competing for share of the market.