International Payment Systems Popular in 2024
You have to have a stable and a legal way of making and receiving international transactions if you wish to enter international markets. For this purpose, you have to set up an account with an electronic payment system (EPS) and adjust it to your needs.
Below we describe several such systems that you can consider.
What is an electronic payment system?
International electronic payment systems are services that allow making transactions globally. The use of such systems saves time, builds connections with customers, and simplifies international money transfers. An EPS would allow your company to enter international markets and receive online payments from anywhere in the world.
Aspects to consider when choosing the payment system
When choosing the payment system, you have to take the following aspects into consideration:
- Reputation. You should not blindly trust the claims of the payment system’s managers. Customer feedback will give you more accurate information. The year of the company formation is also important: the older it is the better.
- Commissions. As a rule, payment systems offer several service packages that affect the amounts of commissions. You should dig deep into the matter, talk to the client support service, and make sure that there are going to be no hidden fees.
- Relevance for your clients. You should bear your target audience in mind. You have to make certain that the payment system works in the region that you are interested in (for example, that it supports payments from American Express cards).
- Interface. If the payment system has a user-friendly interface, you stand a better chance to attract a large number of clients. If a client has to go through a long and difficult process of making a money transfer, he/ she is likely to be turned off.
- Timeframe for withdrawal of funds. Most payment systems transfer money to your account within 5 to 7 business days. Think twice if the timeframe is longer.
- Connection process. The balance between security and red tape is important. If it is too complicated to get connected to a payment system, leave it aside.
There is another important factor. Unlike many banks, international payment systems take high-risk customers onboard. Please seek advice from International Wealth experts if you would like to explore this opportunity in more detail.
Popular payment systems
Stripe
Stripe is an international payment system designed for businesses an electronic commerce companies. It offers a wide spectrum of services that make it easy to adjust a payment gateway and make regular international transactions. The Stripe Radar anti-fraud system allows reducing the risk of fraud and a dispute management system allows solving all disputes between the company and the client.
The standard commission rate is 1.5% + €0.25 for every money transfer for cards issued in the EEA and it is 2.5% + €0.25 if the card is issued in the UK. Large companies can negotiate a special rate. Money can be transferred to bank cards and electronic wallets. Instant payments are available.
PayPal
PayPal is a payment system friendly to both companies and private users. The service allows making fast international money transfers, generating invoices, setting up installment payment schedules, and other opportunities for scaling your business.
The commissions depend on the country, the currency, and the transaction amount. It varies between 2.29% and 3.49% + $0.9 to $0.49 per transaction. You can have additional functions for a fixed monthly pay: Payments Advanced — $5, Payments Pro — $30.
The system has 400 million active users around the world and it allows accepting payments in more than 100 national currencies. PayPal has been in the market for 20 years, which confirms its stability and reliability.
2Checkout
2Checkout is also a service enabling international money transfers. It allows making payments to more than 180 countries and it cooperates with more than 20,000 companies in different parts of the world. 2Checkout has a very nice refund management system.
With the most affordable service package, the commission is 3.5% + $0.30 per each purchase. An advanced service package would allow you to make/ receive recurring payments, customize shipping cards, use multiple payment methods, and so on.
Braintree
Braintree is a service belonging to PayPal. It is available in 45 countries and it allows making/ receiving payments in more than 130 currencies. The service provides opportunities to automate internal business processes, generate reports, and it has efficient tools to ensure payment security.
Money can be transferred to bank cards, electronic wallets, and other payment platforms. The standard commission is 1.9% + €0.30 per transaction.
Authorize.net
Authorize.net is a payment gateway working in the USA, Canada, Europe, and Australia. The payment system cooperates with more than 445,000 sellers. It allows you to accept payments, including recurring (subscription) and installment payments, issue invoices, and simplify the payment process for regular customers.
Authorize.net offers two service packages: ‘All in one’ (a payment gateway + a merchant account) or only a payment gateway. Both cost $25 per month. With the ‘All in one’ package, the commission is 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. With the second service package, the daily fee is $0.1 and the commission is $0.1 per transaction.
Dwolla
Dwolla transfers money between bank accounts, which simplifies the process and makes it less costly. The system works only in the USA, but its partner service called ‘Currencycloud’ allows accepting payments from other countries too.
Dwolla charges 0.5% per transaction, which is lower in comparison to most other payment systems. This is attributable to the fact that the system can process payments only via an ACH (Automated Clearing House).
Dwolla does not process payments made from bank cards while other payment systems accept payments from bank cards and via an ACH. This fact is an argument against choosing Dwolla.
Adyen
Adyen is a payment system for online payments but it can also be used in a brick-and-mortar shop: the company will give you a POS terminal. The Unified Commerce system simplifies payment processing and allows analyzing the transactions.
The service supports more than 100 payment methods. The installation of Adyen is free of charge. The commission is €0.11 per transaction + a fixed commission of up to 5%. The exact amount of the fixed commission depends on the payment method.