Building a Global Marketplace Without the "Big Four" Payment Processors

#webdev #programming #security #appsec

The Problem We Were Actually Solving

We were trying to create a platform that allowed creators to sell tutorials, ebooks, and courses to a global audience, but our focus was on the wrong problem. Instead of concentrating on the payment processing itself, we were more concerned about integrating the "big four" payment processors to access their large user bases and established brand recognition. Our platform's success was heavily tied to the payment processing, but we never considered the risk of platform restrictions that could affect our business model.

What We Tried First (And Why It Failed)

Initially, we tried to use a combination of PayPal and Stripe, thinking that we could circumvent the restrictions by routing payments through a payment processor that still worked in our country. That strategy failed miserably because it put our users' information at risk of being stored and processed in a way that didn't comply with local regulations. Furthermore, we were still left with the problem of dealing with the payment processors themselves, who were constantly changing their terms and conditions.

The Architecture Decision

The tipping point came when we realized that we were essentially trading our users' security and trust for the sake of integrating with a payment processor that we knew wouldn't work in the long run. That's when we made the decision to abandon the "big four" payment processors and explore other options that were more secure and compliant with local regulations. We chose to use a combination of cryptocurrency payments and a local payment processor that specialized in processing international transactions.

What The Numbers Said After

After we made the switch, our conversion rate increased by 25% because users were no longer hesitant to make payments due to the risk of their information being compromised. Our transaction fees also decreased by 30%, since we were no longer paying the processing fees associated with the "big four" payment processors. The best part was that we were able to handle international transactions without running into the same issues that we had with the payment processors.

What I Would Do Differently

In hindsight, I would have prioritized building a global marketplace that was payment-processor-agnostic from the start. This would have allowed us to focus on creating a seamless user experience that was not reliant on any one payment processor. While it's tempting to try and work with the established players, it's crucial to consider the potential risks and trade-offs. Our experience taught us that being overly reliant on a single payment processor can have devastating consequences for our business model and our users' security.