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~ Ingenico, a Worldline brand ~

The development of cross-border e-commerce offers huge growth opportunities to merchants
– provided they’re able to offer the right mix of payment methods to consumers. However,
it’s important to realise that credit cards like Mastercard and VISA are not always preferred
payment methods and that shoppers are increasingly relying on Alternative Payment Methods
(APMs). This is directly reflected in fraud risks, which differ slightly depending on the country.

This is why expanding an e-commerce business abroad comes with particular - and sometimes
unknown - cross-border payment risks.

hen it comes to online business, Card- guarantee for the merchant
Not-Present (CNP) fraud and charge- • SDD and card transactions carry chargeback risks but
W backs are the biggest threats. The invis- are preferential for recurring business models
ibility of online transactions is a big advantage for
fraudsters, who use sophisticated methods to evade Feeling secure
merchants’ security systems. Consumers can feel insecure when it comes to making
online payments, especially when the payment method is
To handle this set of risks, merchants should understand unfamiliar, so they will tend to stick to the methods they
how payment problems occur in the countries they are try- know and trust. Adding the logo of a trusted payment pro-
ing to reach. Smaller business owners often don’t have the vider at checkout increases chances of conversion.
financial strength to gather market intelligence about every You need to identify where your customers are coming
country they receive orders from. These insights might from and offer them their preferred local payment method.
serve as an introduction on how to detect and manage the This will help you reach more customers, decrease cost,
risks. and increase revenue.

Localisation is the key to conversion All-in-one package
Every country has its own preferred online payment habits; To navigate the diverse world of payments, the right sup-
developed over time through local circumstances and often port can be crucial. This is especially true for SMBs, which
with origins in offline shopping. To optimise your conver- don’t have the time or resources to manage cross-border
sion rates, you need to offer the right choice of payment payment risks. They might benefit greatly from a compre-
methods. Local alternative payment methods will always hensive multi-payment offering that helps them control
be preferred. For example: risk for all desired payment methods and advises which
methods work best for each market.
• In France, consumers sometimes use their credit card
to pay in instalments
• German shoppers favour a clear financial overview
and will use invoice payments or direct debit solutions
• In Belgium, Bancontact and bank buttons are a must-
have
• In the UK, only four in ten online transactions are
paid by credit card

Understanding different payment methods to manage risk
Online commerce and risk management go hand-in-hand.
Depending on the model in place, merchants, payment
schemes and consumers take on different levels of risk (fraud,
bankruptcy, chargebacks...). As you may already be aware,
some payment methods offer guarantees, some
don’t:

• Real-time bank transfers or guaranteed open invoice
solutions pose no risk of chargeback
• Non-guaranteed open invoices, on the other hand,
allow for goods to be delivered without a payment

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