Payments Leaders' Summit

It was a pleasure to be back at the Payments Leaders' Summit https://lnkd.in/efMAJsCG London last week and to speak on the panel about Payments Orchestration. Although Payment Orchestration is a popular topic, merchants often understand it differently and sometimes confuse a legacy PSP with a proper independent technology orchestration layer. Payment orchestration is about control and independence from a single PSP, with the ability to route each transaction to achieve the highest possible acceptance rate, the lowest cost, and the most relevant customer experience. #PaymentsLeadersSummit #Orchestration

Contrary to common perception, payment orchestration is not about routing transactions. It is about who controls how revenue flows through the business and about empowering merchants with choice, control, and continuity across every channel. Last week, at the Payments Leaders' Summit, a panel across luxury retail, gaming, and travel had such an engaging conversation on the orchestration technical layer vs the control layer. What came through strongly was how orchestration has evolved from a behind‑the‑scenes connectivity layer into a strategic control framework that lets merchants shape their own payment outcomes. Some of the key insights from the discussion 👉 Luxury Retail In luxury retail, the focus is not on volume but on value and consistency. Brands operate between two extremes: fragmentation and dependency. Orchestration provides the balance point, transforming payments from an operational necessity into a source of visibility, performance, and commercial insight. 👉 Gaming The gaming industry has used routing, failover, and alternative payment mechanisms for decades, proving that control over the transaction flows is key to both performance and resilience. 👉 Travel In travel, even a short disruption can mean immediate revenue loss. Orchestration plays a critical role in protecting continuity. If one payment provider fails, transactions are automatically rerouted to another, keeping bookings flowing and revenue protected. 👉 Build vs Buy This is not a binary decision. Building an orchestration layer implies ownership over its long‑term maintenance, compliance, and evolution. Even the most advanced infrastructures continue to rely on specialised partners for areas such as fraud prevention and authentication. 👉 Omnichannel Integrating online and in‑store payments is not merely a question of customer experience. It is an exercise in harmonising data, reconciliation, and operational systems. Orchestration represents the mechanism that begins to unify these environments. 👉Acquirers The nature of collaboration is changing. This is no longer about selecting a single provider. It is about establishing an ecosystem in which acquirers compete and cooperate within the merchant’s controlled environment, improving performance, pricing, and negotiating position. 👉AI AI will accelerate the processes, but it will not replace the expertise. An effective orchestration strategy still depends on a deep understanding of payment infrastructure, network behaviour, and commercial trade‑offs. AI can enhance decision-making, but it cannot yet independently manage financial risk or accountability. #Payments #Fintech #PaymentOrchestration #MerchantStrategy #Omnichannel Paypr.work [ˈpeɪpəwəːk] Merchant Hub Merchant Hub: Merchant Voice, Amplified! Israel Patrycja Francisco -- 𝘗𝘢𝘺𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘶𝘱𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴! 👉 connect@paypr.work

I had the pleasure of attending the Payments Leaders’ Summit London 2026, an exceptionally well-executed forum that brought together senior leaders from across the payments, banking, and fintech sectors, alongside a strong presence of technology providers showcasing innovative solutions. A key theme throughout the summit was the evolving role of data compliance—shifting from a perceived regulatory burden to a genuine strategic opportunity for merchants. This perspective sparked insightful dialogue and highlighted the importance of rethinking compliance as a value driver rather than a constraint. What stood out most was the high calibre of the panel and roundtable discussions. Topics ranged from cross-border payments and industry collaboration to emerging technologies and new approaches shaping the future of payments. The depth and openness of these conversations created a highly engaging and thought-provoking environment. The event itself was meticulously organised, with well-structured sessions complemented by highly effective one-to-one meetings with technology providers. These interactions enabled meaningful engagement and the exchange of practical, actionable insights. We were also delighted to host roundtable discussions focused on open banking, open finance, and the evolving UK payments landscape. These sessions fostered valuable dialogue among a diverse group of merchants and PSPs, encouraging the sharing of roadmaps and perspectives on the rapidly evolving digital ecosystem. The sessions were notably interactive, with industry knowledge celebrated in a unique and memorable way. Contributions were recognised during an award segment, where a symbolic “pot of honey” was presented by David Parker, founder of Polymath, representing the sharing of knowledge and expertise. I was proud to take home the 🍯! My sincere thanks to the organisers, speakers, and attendees who made the event such a success. I am already looking forward to the next edition. Payments Leaders' Summit Tim Jefferson

Had the opportunity to host a roundtable on Payment Orchestration & Multi-Rail Strategy at #PLS in London, and I’m very glad I did! Roundtables are where real insights emerge: honest conversations about what works, what doesn’t, and the challenges we’re all navigating right now in payments. We had a great mix of perspectives at the table, from fashion retail and luxury to gaming, construction, and a music platform, which made for a dynamic and genuinely engaging discussion. A big thank you to everyone who contributed so openly 🙏 These exchanges are what push our industry forward. Here’s to coming back next year with stronger acceptance rates, lower costs, faster delivery, and even better fraud prevention. It was a blast ✨ Payments Leaders' Summit

𝘈𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳/𝘰𝘳. 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘭, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘣𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺. It is the next layer the industry is trying to figure out. Today, it is being tested, not yet scaled. Most use cases are still in controlled environments, and the infrastructure is not fully in place. But the shift is not just at the interface level. It is happening at the decision layer. Because agentic commerce changes more than the interface. It changes: 👉 Who initiates the transaction 👉 Who selects the merchant 👉 Who controls the decision logic behind the purchase This has direct implications for how merchants need to think about their setup and the real battleground is the back end. Agents do not browse websites in the same way customers do. They query structured data. That means the selection depends on how well a merchant’s data is defined, structured, and accessible. If the product information, attributes, pricing, or availability are incomplete or inconsistent, the merchant is less likely to be returned in that query, which in practical terms means not being considered at all. Discovery is also changing. If an agent learns a preference once, it may not re-evaluate alternatives in the same way a human would. This creates a different dynamic for new brands entering a category and increases the importance of data quality and distribution. This is not a shift in loyalty in the traditional sense. It is a shift in how selection happens. These were some of the discussion points from a very interesting panel at the Payments Leaders' Summit’, moderated by Mark Beresford | Edgar, Dunn & Company, with input from GSK, Google, PayPal, and THG. #ai #agentic #agenticcommerce #payments #retail Karthiga Rajeswaran Blessed Yahaya Lucy Cooper Sean D. #google #paypal

Four great panelists on the topic of Agentic Commerce at the #PLS in London. In 30 minutes we just scratched the surface. Thank you to Lucy Cooper, THG, Karthiga R. Rajeswaran, GSK, Sean D. Douglas, PayPal Open, and Blessed Yahaya, Google.