The Digital Payments Market Landscape

By GilPress
December 22nd, 2015
- Misc
- startups

CBInsights Digital Payments

Payments startups have been seeing considerable momentum, and are on track for $3.8B in funding this year. From point-of-sale solutions to money transfers and mobile payments, these startups are changing how electronic payments are made, accepted, and processed.

We used CB Insights data to identify 109 private companies in payments and mapped them according to the nine main categories where they’re operating. The 109 payments startups included are addressing general payments needs as well as a range of payments market niches, including bitcoin-powered payments, mobile commerce, and specialized consumer-focused payment markets like child support or in-restaurant payments.

The breakdown is as follows:

Online payment services: Startups including Stripe and WePay that help businesses move their payments-processing online and make it more available, secure, and inexpensive.
Billing automation and streamlining: Zuora and Paymentus, among others, streamline invoicing and automate financial processes and billing.
Point-of-sale payments: iZettle, Revel Systems and others offer point-of-sale products and services, including card readers, stands, and digital storefronts. These startups compete with now-public Square in some segments, although Square has put more of an emphasis on small business lending and financial services more recently.
Personal payment services: Companies like MobiKwik and Affirm focus on providing consumers with more convenient payment platforms. Some of these companies focus on particular consumer niches.
Bitcoin payments: Companies like Coinbase and BitPay that use digital currency to make payments faster and more secure.
E-commerce payments: Klarna and other startups focus on the e-commerce market with payments solutions geared to the challenges seen by online merchants. Klarna, for example, extends instant credit for online purchases to consumers without them having to provide payment details, easing the friction involved in completing an online transaction.
Connected card payments: Companies like Coin and Stratos are betting that all-in-one connected credit cards will be a key link in the payments value chain.
Money transfer services: TransferWise and Remitly provide digital solutions for sending money across borders quickly and cheaply.

Last updated on December 22nd, 2015.