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Now is an ideal time to “think global” for US-based payment businesses. World economic conditions are ideal for expansion.
Emerging global markets are becoming very attractive to US-based businesses because of the growth in Gross Domestic Product in many emerging markets and the desire of local country consumers to spend. What makes 2008 a very unique time to go global is the existence of a stable banking and secure payment networking environment. There are now over 110 countries through out the world that have implemented some form of payment structure. From Central Europe to South East Asia governments are embracing electronic payment as a vehicle for growing pent up demand for consumable products. Countries like Ukraine are even mandating the use of cards by large retailers because electronic transaction processing provides a way of tracking retail revenues and consumer spending.
According to Chris Alexander, Transmark Advisory Services President, “Many US-based corporations have made the decision not to pursue global interests because they quite frankly are too focused on their US enterprises.”
“I’ve seen too many cases where organizations have failed to look beyond their boarders because they lack the internal resources to put together a workable business plan. This may be a poor decision because there are many local countries that have characteristics very attractive to US payment organizations.” stated Alexander.
“Visa, MasterCard, and local country payment schemes are focused on creating a market for Acquirers and and other payment vendors by flooding some markets with debit and credit cards and working to stimulate growth by reducing merchant interchange rates.” According to Alexander, “Launching beachhead programs now is an effective way to take advantage of the seeding done by these associations and corporations.”
“It is also important not to overlook opportunities in vertical market segments. Gift card programs are still in their infancy in many markets and large retailers see this as a way of gaining greater revenues and customer loyalty.” Alexander concluded.
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