Given the rapidly growing popularity of embedded finance in recent years, prospective customers have an increasingly wide range of providers to choose from. While this is a positive development overall, it does come with a certain number of downsides. Key among them is the difficulty of separating the wheat from the chaff, especially given the vigorous marketing strategies often deployed by market newcomers.
To help you make an informed decision and choose the best provider for your needs, we’ve put together a list of things you might want to keep in mind during your searches. Also, feel free to skip to the end of the article if you just want an easy-to-understand checklist of features to look for in a quality provider of embedded finance solutions.
#1. Customer service and support
For companies offering embedded financial services to customers, their smooth functioning is of paramount importance. For this reason, when something inevitably goes wrong, you don’t want to be stuck with an unresponsive or generally unprofessional service provider.
Things to consider:
- What is the provider’s average latency of response to inquiries?
- Does the provider give specific reasons for refusing services?
- Are customers generally happy with the quality of service?
- Is the provider flexible in the face of technical issues or incompatibilities?
- Does the provider have seasoned tech staff able to give quality support?
- What is the provider’s level of process automation (the higher the better)?
#2. Pricing and contract terms
Before signing up, make sure to examine service plans, including pricing, as well as contract terms and conditions in some detail. This will preclude any unpleasant surprises, or downright disasters, in the future.
Things to consider:
- Does the provider disclose pricing on the website?
- Is the pricing structure clear and unambiguous?
- Are there any hidden fees or other fine print?
- Do the fees rise upon failure to cross a specific threshold?
- Are the prices competitive with regard to other providers?
- How complicated are the contract termination clauses?
- Are the provider’s BaaS products clearly defined?
#3. Regulatory compliance
One of the key benefits of embedded finance is the reduced, or altogether removed, need for customers to make sure their financial services are compliant with the regulations applicable to financial institutions. Many, though not all, providers of embedded finance shoulder this responsibility on behalf of their customers.
Things to consider:
- Does the provider ensure regulatory compliance for customers?
- Is the desired embedded finance solution PSD2-compliant?
- Does the provider offer customer KYC via APIs or via the platform only?
#4. Refunds and currencies
Ideally, an embedded finance provider should offer multi-currency support and a quick-and-easy refund process to its customers. This is especially relevant if your business is global in nature, or you have plans to scale in the future, or if you want to secure maximum customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Things to consider:
- What is the provider’s average refund processing time?
- Does the provider have a clear flow of integrating Paysera for platforms?
- How quickly does the provider release outstanding funds to customers?
- Does the provider offer multi-currency support?
Finally, make sure to scan the provider’s website for any testimonials, customer reviews, success stories, partner blurbs, and other credible proofs of the quality of the products and services on offer.
Key takeaways
Embedded finance is becoming ever more popular with both financial and non-financial businesses, which translates into a steadily increasing number of providers offering their services on the market. While, on the one hand, this introduces some much needed variety and promotes innovation, on the other, it makes it more difficult to make an informed decision when looking for a provider that’s optimal to one’s business.
Having gone through the key things to consider during the selection process, let’s put it all together and build an ideal profile. A world-class embedded finance provider would offer all, or most, of the following:
- Integrated regulatory compliance
- Prompt and high quality customer service
- Expert customer support team
- Wide range of flexible products/services
- Attentiveness to clients’ specific needs
- Willingness to build custom solutions
- Competitive and clearly stated pricing
- Multi-currency support
- Quick release of refunds to customers
