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Payments Explained
Everything you need to know about online payments.Read more ›
Payment Methods
Increase your conversion rates by offering the right payment methods
INTERNATIONAL CREDIT CARDS
With international credit cards still paving the way for most customers to shop online, merchants and businesses looking to reach out to an international market should supply credit card payments.
CREDIT
CARDS
The cardholder receives a credit from the issuer. The balance is rolling and settled on a monthly basis
DEBIT
CARDS
The amount of the purchase is withdrawn from the available balance on the cardholder’s account. If there are not enough funds on the account, the transaction is declined by the issuer.
PRE-PAID
CREDIT CARDS
Cards are loaded with money in advance to create a balance that can be spent.
DOMESTIC CREDIT CARDS
Domestic cards operate much like international models but are used in specific countries. Allowing mostly debit or credit card payments, these cards are often co-branded with VISA or Mastercard for use outside the country’s borders.
Although co-branded, the domestic branding is often dominant within a country. For example, in Belgium, Bancontact cards are co- branded with Visa or Maestro, although most consumers will simply opt for the localised brand.
The best-known domestic schemes in Europe are:
ALTERNATIVE PAYMENT METHODS
Wallets
Wallets are increasing their market share on an international level. They’re user-friendly, convenient and straightforward. As wallets contain delivery and invoice data, they can authenticate the consumer in one single step.
Payment wallets authenticate the consumer and process the payment. The most popular examples are PayPal and Alipay.
Container wallets take care of customer authentication and provide payment data to process the payment method through a known payment method (e.g. VISA or MasterCard). As a consequence, merchants also need to have an acquiring contract with these payment methods to process the payment.
REAL-TIME BANKING
Real-time Banking (RTB) solutions are very popular in Europe. Customers make online payments via their bank to make purchases or to transfer money instantly. It’s very consumer-friendly as it uses the bank environment or bank app that the consumer is used to.
OFFLINE
BANK TRANSFERTS
An offline bank transfer enables your customer to pay using a payment reference that they received when purchasing – but authorisation is not instant. When choosing offline bank transfers as a payment method, you should only ship goods upon receipt of the money in your account.
DIRECT DEBITS
While most payment methods are push- based, a direct debit is a pull-payment method where the merchant withdraws money from the customer account, generally to pay bills or standard, repeat payments.
OPEN INVOICE
& INSTALMENTS
This payment method allows customers to pay for their purchase after delivery; sometimes in one transaction, sometimes in instalments. The customer shares information on invoicing and delivery but does not share any credit card or other payment details (e.g. Klarna).
CREDIT
CONSUMPTION
Credit consumption offers customers the opportunity to open a financial agreement to buy goods on credit. This payment service is popular in Southern Europe (France, Spain and Italy, e.g. Oney, Cofidis).
PRE-PAID
OR GIFT CARD
Customers upload a card or receive a gift voucher before they can use it to purchase a product. Authorisation of these cards is online and instant (e.g. Fashioncheque, Illicado, PaySafeCard).
CASH-BASED
PAYMENT METHODS
The customer purchases a product or service online and receives a unique reference to pay for the purchase at an affiliated outlet, store or ATM (e.g. MultiBanco).
FULL-SERVICE PAYMENT CAPABILITIES
In traditional models, you would sign a contract with each party and then carry out a direct integration with multiple payment methods. As a consequence you would have multiple reporting formats to deal with, multiple payment terms to manage in your accounting cycles, and multiple contacts to reach out to when you have a problem.
With Worldline, we simplify your life by offering a single solution to accommodate all your needs – and one contact person to help you grow your business.
For example, we have a solution that includes the 14 essential payment methods, to ensure that you offer your customers their preferred local payment method. Streamlined, all-in-one integration. You’ll also get instant access to more than 150 alternative payment methods via your gateway integration, e.g. American Express, PayPal, P24, gift cards.
EXPERT ADVICE
Are you already a customer and need assistance?
The Worldline Support Team is here to help.
Learn more about popular topics and find resources that will help you with your Worldline set-up.
Managing day-to-day payment tasks is now easier than ever with our new, intuitive Merchant Portal.
Discover the Merchant Portal ›