Build, Own, Scale.
Don't Rent.

The payment infrastructure map for merchants, SaaS & fintechs

When you outgrow Stripe or Adyen, you face a maze of 200+ providers across 21 layers. STACKS maps who does what, what it costs, and what you actually own. Built from 8+ years operating inside the stack—not from vendor decks.

Issues to Tackle → 21 Building Blocks Find Your Profile
WHO BUILDS ON THE STACK
Merchant
E-com · Retail
Platform
Marketplace · SaaS
Fintech
Neobank · Wallet
Enterprise
B2B · Treasury
↓ Relies On
21 BUILDING BLOCKS
0 3 4 6 7 9 10 11 12 13
Acquiring · Vault · Route · Stablecoin · Agentic · Credit · Insurance
↓ Managed By
ADMIN BLOCKS
📊 Data
Analytics · BI
⚙️ Ops
Refunds · Disputes
🔄 Recon
Settlement · Ledger
🎯 Issues to Tackle

What Are You Trying To Solve?

Pick your issue. We'll highlight the building blocks that matter.

💰
Improve Margins
Move from ~2.9% to IC++ (~1.2%)
L4 → L5 → L6
📊
Own Your Data
Raw auth codes, proprietary models
L3 → L5 → L8
🔐
Own Your Tokens
No PSP lock-in, portable PANs
L4 → L6
🏦
Own Financial Products
Cards, wallets, accounts, stablecoins
L7 → L10.1
📒
Own Your Ledger
Real-time balances, multi-currency, crypto
L7 → L10
🛡️
Own Your Compliance
DORA, MiCA, PSD2/PSD3, NIS2
L3 → L7 → L10 → Backbone
📜
Get Licensed
Agent → EMI → PI → Bank
L3 → L5 → L7
🚀
New Rails Readiness
A2A, stablecoins, 24/7 settlement
L2 → L10.3
🤖
Prepare for Agentic
AI agents as buyers
L11.1 → L11.2 → L11.3
🔄
Show All Layers
Reset filter
📦 21 Building Blocks

The Complete Payment Stack

Click any block to explore providers. From bundled PSPs to agentic commerce.

MATURE Production-ready GROWING Rapid adoption 2025 Major updates AT TABLE In protocol working groups
Surface Layer — The Bundled Starting Points
L0
Full-Stack PSP
All-in-one bundled
AllShow all
E-commerceOnline only
OmnichannelOnline + POS
MarketplaceMulti-seller
Convenience
vs control
Stripe 2025
$1.4T TPV. AI Foundation Model (May '25). Bridge ($1.1B), Privy, Tempo. Agentic Suite + ACP.
Adyen 2025
€346.9B TPV Q3. Uplift AI (+6% auth). LVMH 1K stores. Google AP2 partner.
Checkout.com
$300B+ vol '25. $12B valuation (Sept). Profitable Q4 '24. Japan, Canada, Brazil expansion.
PayPal / Braintree
Agent Toolkit (Oct '25). Mastercard Agent Pay partner. Consumer brand + wallet.
Mollie EU
EU-focused. SMB e-commerce. Fast onboarding.
Square MCP
SMB. Strong POS hardware. Online + in-store. AI ordering.
Worldline
EU leader. Enterprise omnichannel. Strong retail.
Nexi
Italy, Nordics, DACH. Post-Nets merger. Strong retail.
Clover (Fiserv)
SMB platform. POS + acquiring. US dominant.
Dojo EU
UK SMB acquirer. Paymentsense rebrand. Fast growth.
myPOS EU
EU SMB. Integrated POS + acquiring. Fast onboarding.
HiPay EU
France/EU mid-market. Omnichannel. Gaming strong.
PayPlug EU
France SMB. E-commerce focused. BPCE Group.
Mangopay EU
Marketplace-native. Escrow + wallets. €80B+ processed.
Lemonway EU
EU regulated escrow. Marketplace splits. PSD2 licensed.
Hyperwallet (PayPal)
Mass payouts + marketplace. Gig economy. Uber, Airbnb.
L0.1
MOR, PayFac & Cross-Border
Full liability outsource
AllShow all
MORMerchant of Record
Cross-BorderInternational DTC
PayFacEmbedded
Zero Liability
they own risk
Paddle
MOR for SaaS. Handles VAT, sales tax globally.
FastSpring
MOR for software, games. Global tax compliance.
Digital River ☠️ DEAD
Chapter 7 bankruptcy May '25. Former enterprise MOR. Clients migrating to FastSpring, Paddle.
2Checkout / Verifone
MOR + subscription billing.
LemonSqueezy
MOR for creators, indie devs. Simple.
Global-e HOT
Cross-border DTC. Duties, taxes, localized checkout. Powers Adidas, LVMH.
Zonos
Landed cost calculator. Duties + taxes at checkout.
Flow Commerce
Cross-border platform. Shopify Plus partner.
Stripe Connect
Marketplace PayFac. Stripe Tax for compliance. 40+ countries.
Alipay+ HOT
Ant Group PayFac. 1B+ users. Cross-border APAC + EU.
Nuvei
PayFac enabler. Global acquiring.
Shift4
PayFac. Strong hospitality, restaurants.
Rapyd
Fintech-as-a-service. PayFac + BaaS.
Finix
PayFac infrastructure. SaaS becomes PayFac.
L0.2
Acquirers
Direct processing relationship
AllShow all
GlobalMulti-region
EuropeEU/UK strength
EmergingLatAm, Asia
Direct Rates
IC++ possible
Worldpay MCP
$2.3T TPV. Largest processor. 52B txn/year.
Worldline
EU leader by revenue. Enterprise omnichannel.
Fiserv
US giant. Owns Clover. Global reach.
Global Payments MERGED
Worldpay acq completed Jan 9 '26. 6M+ merchants. $3.7T volume. 94B txns. 175 countries.
J.P. Morgan Payments
#1 CNP acquirer in EU. Bank-grade.
Nexi EU
Italy, Nordics, DACH. Post-Nets merger.
PayPlug EU
France SMB. BPCE Group. Growing fast.
Revolut Business NEW
EU acquiring live. Fast onboarding. Growing merchant base.
SumUp
SMB acquiring + terminals. 4M+ merchants.
Dojo EU
UK SMB acquirer. Paymentsense rebrand. Fast growth.
myPOS EU
EU SMB. Instant settlement. Integrated terminals.
HiPay EU
France/EU mid-market. Omnichannel. Gaming strong.
Clover (Fiserv)
SMB platform. POS + acquiring. US dominant.
dLocal
LatAm & Africa specialist. Emerging markets.
Mercado Pago
LatAm dominant. 50M+ users.
Razorpay
India leader. $7.5B valuation.
Alipay / WeChat Pay
China. 1B+ users combined.
Core Stack — Build Your Own
L1
Capture
Customer touchpoint
AllShow all
OnlineCheckout
POS SoftwareOmnichannel
HardwareTerminals
Pay-at-TableHospitality
UX Control
own experience
Build in-house
Full checkout control. Max flexibility.
Bold Commerce
Headless checkout. Shopify Plus partner.
Fast (Affirm)
One-click checkout. Acquired by Affirm.
Bolt
One-click checkout network. 80M shoppers.
Nepting EU
Multi-acquirer POS. Nexo standard. EU leader.
FreedomPay
Enterprise POS. Hospitality, retail.
ACI Worldwide
Omnichannel. Real-time payments.
Lightspeed
SMB POS platform. Retail + hospitality.
PAX Technology
Android terminals. Global #2 in hardware.
Ingenico
AXIUM terminals. Enterprise grade.
Verifone
Terminals + cloud software.
Castles Technology
Android terminals. Asia + EU presence.
Tap to Pay (Apple/Google)
SoftPOS. Phone becomes terminal.
Dejamobile
SoftPOS SDK. White-label tap-to-pay.
Sunday HOT
Pay-at-table leader. 10K+ restaurants.
Obypay EU
France. QR order + pay.
QikServe
UK. Acquired by Access Group.
Vita Mojo
UK. Order & pay platform.
L2
Accept
Payment methods
AllShow all
Local APMsiDEAL, BLIK, etc.
BNPLBuy Now Pay Later
A2A / Open BankingBank transfers
CryptoStablecoin accept
Coverage
local methods
PPRO
175+ local APMs. Global coverage.
iDEAL (NL)
Netherlands. 70%+ online share. Bank redirect.
BLIK (PL)
Poland. 80M+ txn/month. Mobile-first.
Bancontact (BE)
Belgium. 85% card market. Payconiq merger.
Bizum (ES)
Spain. 28M users. Bank consortium P2P.
MB Way (PT)
Portugal. 5M users. Mobile payments.
Swish (SE)
Sweden. 8M users. Bank consortium.
Klarna HOT
Global BNPL leader. $6.7B valuation. Banking license.
Affirm
US BNPL. Public company. Amazon partner.
Afterpay (Block)
APAC/US BNPL. Acquired by Block $29B.
Alma EU
France BNPL leader. €490M raised.
Scalapay EU
Southern EU. Fashion focus. €700M+ raised.
Oney (BPCE)
France. Bank-backed BNPL. Retail partnerships.
Billie EU
B2B BNPL. Germany. €100M+ raised.
Wero / EPI HOT
45M+ users. E-commerce live Germany. Luxembourg June '26. iDEAL migration. Expanding FR/BE.
Token.io
A2A payments. Open banking connectivity.
TrueLayer
UK/EU open banking. VRP support.
Tink (Visa)
€100M+ daily txn volume. Open banking platform. Visa-owned. 509+ banking institutions.
Plaid IPO '26
$575M Series E ext. $6.1B valuation. IPO projected mid-late '26. 12K FIs.
GoCardless
SEPA, BACS, ACH direct debit. Recurring.
Bridge HOT
Stripe's $1.1B. Stablecoin orchestration.
BVNK
$12B volume. Multi-rail: stablecoin + fiat.
MoonPay
Crypto on-ramp. Let users buy to pay.
L3
Risk, Identity & Compliance
Fraud, Auth, KYC, Disputes
AllShow all
FraudML + guarantee
IdentityAuth + verification
KYC / KYBOnboarding
DisputesChargebacks
AMLSanctions
Own Risk
or outsource
Sardine $660M
$70M Series C Feb '25. AI agents automate fraud ops. 2.2B devices profiled. 130% YoY ARR growth.
Stripe Radar
ML fraud built into Stripe. 38% less fraud on average. Custom rules.
Ravelin
ML fraud. 3DS optimization. UK-based.
Sift
Digital trust platform. Account protection.
Signifyd
100% chargeback guarantee. E-commerce.
Forter TACP
TACP + Predictive Payment Routing beta. GenAI agent detection. $525M total. AWS Marketplace live.
Riskified 2026
Adaptive Checkout launch. Guarantee model. Ascend 2026 global summit.
Feedzai $2B
$75M Series E. $2B valuation. Digital Euro fraud prevention. Bank-grade ML.
Marble OSS
Open-source fraud & AML decisioning. Hexa portfolio (Spendesk, Aircall). 100+ clients. No-code rules. Self-hosted or SaaS.
Stytch HOT
Passwordless auth. Passkeys. B2B auth. $1B+ valuation.
Passage (1Password)
Passkeys-first. Acquired by 1Password.
Auth0 (Okta)
Identity platform. Enterprise SSO. MFA.
Plaid Identity
Bank account verification. Income + identity.
Stripe Identity
Document + selfie verification. Built into Stripe.
Persona
KYC/KYB flows. Identity verification.
Alloy
Identity decisioning. Bank onboarding.
Onfido
Document + biometric verification.
Chargebacks911
Chargeback prevention + management. ROI guarantee.
Midigator
Dispute management platform. Analytics.
Verifi (Visa)
Order Insight. CDRN alerts. Compelling Evidence 3.0.
Ethoca (Mastercard)
Consumer Clarity. Real-time alerts. Prevention.
Chainalysis
Crypto compliance. Blockchain analytics.
ComplyAdvantage
AML data. Sanctions screening.
Flagright $4.3M
AI-native AML compliance. Frontline Ventures seed. Free year 1 for startups. London, NY, SF.
TRM Labs $1B+
$70M Series C. Blockchain intelligence & compliance. Crypto fraud/AML infrastructure.
Sardine vs Forter in Agentic: Sardine = AI agents automate YOUR fraud ops (internal). Forter TACP = authenticate EXTERNAL AI shopping agents. Different problems, both L3.
L4
Route
Orchestration
AllShow all
OrchestrationMulti-PSP routing
Resilience
+ lower costs
ProcessOut
Smart routing. Analytics. 45+ connections.
Spreedly
$45B+ volume. Universal vault + routing. 100+ countries.
Primer
$75M raised. Drag-and-drop payment flows.
Payrails
Workflow engine. Rule-based routing.
Gr4vy AGENTIC
Cloud-native orchestration. Agentic MVP Sept '25. MCP + AP2 integration. Agent-specific rules.
Yuno
LatAm focused. Local payment routing.
Deuna
LatAm orchestration. Checkout + routing.
APEXX Global $10M
$10M Feb '26. Multi-acquirer orchestration. Enterprise payment optimization.
L5
Process
Direct acquiring
AllShow all
Direct-to-SchemeIC++ pricing
Acquirer EUEurope
Acquirer US/GlobalAmericas
Sponsor BankBIN sponsorship
Best Economics
IC++ = 40% savings
Silverflow HOT
Cloud-native. Direct-to-scheme. Raw data access.
Estreem EU
BNP+BPCE JV. 17B txn. EU direct acquiring.
Paymenture
Direct-to-scheme. IC++ for enterprise.
BNP Paribas EU
EU bank acquirer. €300B+ TPV. Enterprise.
Santander EU
EU/LatAm acquirer. Getnet subsidiary.
Barclays
UK acquirer. Enterprise merchants.
Crédit Agricole EU
France acquirer. Retail banking network.
JPMorgan Payments
US bank acquirer. $10T+ annual volume.
Worldpay MCP
$2.3T TPV. Largest processor. 52B txn/year.
Global Payments MERGED
Worldpay acq completed Jan 9 '26. 6M+ merchants. $3.7T volume. 94B txns. 175 countries.
Fiserv
US giant. First Data. Global processing.
FIS
Issuer + acquirer processing. Global.
BPCE / PPS EU
EU sponsor bank. PayPlug parent.
Elavon
Sponsor bank + acquirer. US Bank subsidiary.
Wells Fargo
US sponsor bank. ISO/PayFac programs.
L6
Vault
Token ownership
AllShow all
PAN VaultOwn your tokens
Data PrivacyPII protection
Portability
no PSP lock-in
VGS HOT
4B+ tokens. a16z/Goldman. Visa partnership. Agentic commerce positioning. PSP portable.
Basis Theory $33M
$33M Series B Oct '25. Developer-first tokenization. Agentic commerce focus. PCI L1.
Skyflow
Data privacy vault. PII + PCI in one.
TokenEx
Enterprise tokenization. 15+ years.
Evervault
Encryption infrastructure. Developer SDK.
Stripe Forward NEW
Stripe vault + forwarding API. Tokenize in Stripe, forward to any PSP. Multi-processor data custody.
L7
Ledger, Accounts & Cards
Own the financial products
AllShow all
LedgerSource of truth
BaaS / AccountsIBANs, wallets
Card IssuingDebit, credit
Own Products
wallets, cards, data
Formance OSS
$21M Series A (PayPal Ventures). Open-source ledger. Numscript DSL. Own your stack.
Mambu
Cloud core banking. SaaS model.
Thought Machine
Cloud-native core. Vault platform. Tier 1 banks.
10x Banking
Cloud-native core. UK-based. Westpac client.
Stripe Treasury
Embedded banking. FDIC-insured accounts via Stripe.
Swan EU
EU BaaS. French IBANs. EMI licensed.
Unit
US BaaS. Survived Synapse. Daily reconciliation.
Treezor EU
EU BaaS. Shares in acquisition talks Jan '26. EMI. 8M+ cards issued. €130B+ txn flows.
Solaris EU
German BaaS. Full banking license. Samsung partner.
Stripe Issuing
Card issuing via Stripe. Virtual + physical. Spending controls.
Marqeta M&A
Power Finance acq ($275M) + TransactPay (€47M). Credit + EU expansion. $4.12 stock. $1.82B mkt cap.
Lithic $120M
$60M Series C. Stripes led. API-first issuing + processing. Stablecoin card partnership.
Highnote $750M+
$90M Series B. $750M+ valuation. Unified pay-in/pay-out + issuing. Single general ledger.
Thredd (ex-GPS)
EU issuer processor. Revolut backend.
Galileo
US issuing. Powers SoFi, Chime. SoFi owned.
Rails ≠ License: EMI/PI license doesn't mean automatic IBAN issuance. You need: SEPA direct access + BIC code + IBAN range. Most fintechs use sponsor banks (Swan, Treezor) even with their own license.
L8
Data & Billing
Measure & monetize
AllShow all
Payment AnalyticsIntelligence, data
Usage BillingMetered, consumption
SubscriptionRecurring revenue
Intelligence
& monetization
Pagos
Payment intelligence. Auth optimization.
via Silverflow
Raw scheme data. Direct access to auth codes.
Stripe Billing
Subscription + invoicing. Usage billing. Revenue Recovery.
Lago OSS
Open-source usage billing. Stripe alternative.
Orb
Usage billing. API companies. YC-backed.
Metronome
Consumption billing. a16z-backed.
Zuora
Enterprise subscription. Public company.
Chargebee
Subscription management. B2B SaaS.
Recurly
Subscription billing. Dunning, retention.
RevenueCat
Mobile subscriptions. In-app purchases.
L9
Money Movement
Splits, payouts, cross-border
AllShow all
PayoutsGlobal FX
CapitalLending API
Distribution
your economics
Wise Business
Best FX rates. 80+ countries. Real mid-market.
Airwallex
Multi-currency accounts. APAC strength. $5.5B valuation.
Payoneer 2026
Mexico + Indonesia expansion. Acquired Boundless (EoR). India authorization. 190+ countries.
Tipalti
AP automation. Supplier payouts. Tax compliance.
Thunes $150M
Series D Apr '25. US 50-state licenses. 130 countries, 550 direct integrations. Profitable.
Nium
APAC real-time. 100+ countries. Licensed globally.
Modern Treasury HOT
Payment ops platform. Multi-bank connectivity. ACH, wire, RTP, FedNow orchestration. Virtual accounts. Counterparty management.
Sivo HOT
"Stripe for Debt." Debt-as-a-Service API. $100M capital.
Embedded Finance — Credit & Insurance
L12
Credit & Funding
Lending, capital, treasury
AllShow all
Lending-as-a-ServiceEmbed credit
Credit DecisioningUnderwriting
Funding SourceCapital providers
Credit Stack
invisible but complex
Sivo HOT
Debt-as-a-Service. Embed lending in 30 days.
Lendflow
Embedded lending platform. SMB focus.
Rutter
Commerce data for lenders. Underwriting API.
Pipe
Revenue-based financing. SaaS companies.
Alloy
Identity + credit decisioning platform.
Inscribe
AI document verification. Fraud detection.
Experian API
Credit bureau data. Traditional scoring.
Plaid Income
Income + employment verification.
Codat
Financial data sync for lenders.
Arc
Revenue-based financing. Startup capital.
Credit Stack Pattern: Funding Source (who provides capital) → Decisioning (who underwrites) → Servicing (who manages loans). Each requires different suppliers.
L13
Embedded Insurance
Platform + Underwriter
AllShow all
PlatformDistribution/UX
UnderwriterRisk carrier
Coverage
always find both
Cover Genius HOT
Global embedded insurance. APIs for any product.
Qover EU
EU embedded insurance. E-commerce, mobility.
Boost Insurance
US insurtech. White-label products.
Hakuna EU
Embedded warranty. E-commerce focus.
bolttech
Global. Device protection, travel, shipping.
Lloyd's
Global specialty market. Capacity provider.
Munich Re
Reinsurance giant. Backs many insurtechs.
Wakam EU
EU risk carrier. API-first underwriting.
Insurance Pattern: Platform (distribution + UX) ≠ Underwriter (risk carrier). Always identify both. Platform takes commission, underwriter takes premium.
Stablecoin Infrastructure — GENIUS Act + MiCA EXPLOSIVE 2025
L10.1
Stablecoin Issuance
GENIUS Act (US) + MiCA (EU)
AllShow all
Use ExistingUSDC, USDT, PYUSD
White-LabelIssue your own
Yield-BearingTokenized MMFs
Digital $
$217B supply
Circle NYSE: CRCL
USDC. IPO June '25. $73.7B circulation. Stock volatile ($31→$298→~$70). CPN network.
Paxos HOT
Powers PYUSD. Acquired Fordefi (MPC wallets). OCC bank charter pending. USDG network.
Tether
USDT $155B+ supply. USA₮ launched Jan '26 (GENIUS compliant). Dual-stablecoin strategy.
SoFiUSD DEC '25
First national bank stablecoin. OCC-regulated. White-label infra for banks/fintechs.
Bridge Open Issuance HOT
Stripe. Any business launches stablecoins. Visa card issuing partnership. KlarnaUSD via Bridge.
Hashnote (Circle) NEW
USYC tokenized MMF. $1.5B AUM. Acquired by Circle Jan '25.
Stablecore $20M
Bank infrastructure only. Community/regional banks issue own stablecoins. Not merchant-facing.
Breeze
Stablecoin-as-a-Service. White-label issuance.
Fidelity FIDD FEB '26
USD stablecoin on Ethereum. 1:1 Treasury-backed. GENIUS Act compliant. Launched Feb 4, 2026.
Dakota NEW
B2B stablecoin infra. Modular APIs for programmable money movement. MSB registered US. Pursuing EU EMI/CASP.
Who can use what: SoFiUSD + Bridge = fintechs/merchants can directly use or white-label. Stablecore = bank infrastructure only (plugs into Jack Henry, FIS cores). Merchants go through the bank, not direct API.
L10.2
Wallet Infrastructure
Embedded wallets, key management, custody
AllShow all
Embedded WalletsIn-app wallets
Enterprise CustodyInstitutional grade
175M+ wallets
Stripe + Fireblocks consolidating
Turnkey $52M
Ex-Coinbase Custody. 50M+ wallets. TEE-based. Bridge, Polymarket, Magic Eden, Alchemy.
Privy → Stripe ACQ JUN '25
75M+ accounts. One-click wallet creation. Hyperliquid, OpenSea, Blackbird.
Dynamic → Fireblocks ACQ OCT '25
~$90M deal. 50M accounts. Kraken, zerohash, Magic Eden, Ondo Finance.
Crossmint $24M
40+ blockchains. Agentic commerce toolkit. 40K devs. 1,100% revenue growth.
DFNS
API-first wallet infra. MPC. For fintechs building wallets.
Fireblocks $5T+
Acquired TRES Finance ($130M) + Dynamic (~$90M). 2400+ clients. $5T+ annual. Custody-to-consumer.
BitGo IPO
First crypto IPO '26. NYSE: BTGO. $2.08B valuation. Multi-sig custody. $100B+ assets.
Anchorage $4.2B
$100M Tether investment. $4.2B valuation. OCC-chartered. IPO planned '26.
2025 Consolidation: Stripe owns Bridge (stablecoin) + Privy (wallets) = full crypto stack. Fireblocks owns Dynamic (wallets) = custody-to-consumer. Turnkey = last major independent embedded wallet infra.
L10.3
On/Off-Ramp & Card Issuing
Fiat↔crypto + spend stablecoins
AllShow all
On/Off-RampFiat ↔ Crypto
Crypto Card IssuingStablecoin spend
Accept CryptoMerchant payments
Spend USDC
at 150M+ merchants
Rain $1.95B
$250M Series C. Unicorn. 200+ partners (Western Union, Nuvei). $3B+ annualized txns. 30x card growth.
Baanx FCA
Self-custody cards. MetaMask Card, Ledger CL Card, Exodus Card. 1inch. EMI licensed.
Immersve
Mastercard issuing-as-a-service. Bitget Wallet (80M users). UK/EU/LATAM.
MoonPay $3B
160+ countries. Acquired Meso (Sept '25). MetaMask, Uniswap, OpenSea. Full ramp stack.
Transak 6 US MTLs
MetaMask mUSD partner. First wire-to-crypto. 64 countries. Ledger, Trust Wallet.
Ramp Network
150+ countries. FCA + FinCEN. GameStop, MetaMask, Ledger. Open Banking KYC.
Bridge (Stripe) $1.1B
101 countries. USDB + USDC. Stablecoin Financial Accounts. Visa card issuing.
BVNK $750M
$50M Series B. $750M valuation. $30B annual stablecoin vol. Visa Direct pilot. Citi Ventures.
Modern Treasury + Beam OCT '25
Hybrid fiat + stablecoin API. ACH, wire, RTP, FedNow + USDC/USDG. First payment ops platform with both rails.
Visa USDC Settlement US LIVE
Dec '25 US launch. $3.5B annualized. Solana. Cross River, Lead Bank.
Lightspark 65 COUNTRIES
Grid expanded to 65 countries. 24/7 fiat + stablecoin settlement. Joined Google AP2. David Marcus.
BitPay
Crypto acceptance since 2011. Merchant settlement to fiat.
Talos $1.5B
$45M Series B ext. Institutional digital asset trading infra. Robinhood + Sony backing.
Rain = Marqeta for stablecoins: $1.95B unicorn. 200+ partners. Visa Principal Member, omni-chain settlement. Powers Western Union, Nuvei, KAST. The crypto card issuing infrastructure layer.
L10.4
Stablecoin Blockchains
Purpose-built payment rails
AllShow all
Payment-First2025 launches
Existing L1sSolana, Ethereum
Settlement
100K+ TPS
Tempo (Stripe/Paradigm) $5B
Sept '25. $500M Series A. Public testnet Dec. Partners: Visa, Mastercard, UBS, OpenAI, Shopify.
Circle Arc NEW
Aug '25. Multi-chain USDC infra. Visa validator partner.
Solana
Visa USDC settlement live. Sub-second finality. <$0.001 fees.
Ethereum / L2s
Base, Arbitrum, Optimism. EVM compatible. Largest developer ecosystem.
Tron
De facto USDT rail. $40B+ daily. Dominant emerging markets.
Agentic Commerce Infrastructure — AI Payments SHIPPING Q1 2026
How Agent Commerce Actually Works
User Request
👤 Human
"Buy me Nike Air Max size 10"
→
LLM = The Agent
🤖 Agent
ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini
→
L11.1 Standards
📡 Protocol
ACP, UCP, AP2
→
Receives API call
🏪 Merchant
Shopify, Direct API
→
Processes payment
💳 PSP
Stripe, Adyen
Key insight: Agent sends structured API request. Agent triggers, doesn't navigate. No "checkout page" — just protocol calls.
🔧 MCP is the foundation layer. Anthropic created MCP, donated to Linux Foundation (AAIF). 97M+ monthly SDK downloads. 10K+ active servers. All commerce protocols (ACP, UCP, AP2) build ON TOP of MCP.
L11.1
Protocols & Standards
Rules for AI-initiated transactions
AllShow all
Open ProtocolsStripe ACP, Google AP2
Network ProtocolsVisa, Mastercard
Crypto-Nativex402, KYA
Standards
interoperability
Stripe ACP HOT AT TABLE
Agentic Commerce Protocol. Open standard with OpenAI. Shared Payment Token (SPT). Etsy + Shopify live.
Google UCP NEW AT TABLE
Universal Commerce Protocol. Direct ACP competitor. Launch partners: Target, Walmart, Shopify. Mandate-based agent authorization.
Google AP2 60+ PARTNERS AT TABLE
Agent Payments Protocol. Adyen, Amex, Coinbase, PayPal, Mastercard, Revolut. Mandate system for agent authorization.
Gr4vy Agentic MVP
Sept '25 alpha. MCP server + AP2 integration. Agent-specific rules, fraud controls, orchestration.
Forter TACP OPEN
Trusted Agentic Commerce Protocol. GitHub open. Agent authentication + merchant trust. Not same as fraud ops.
Cloudflare Web Bot Auth
IETF RFC 9421. AI agent authentication standard. Akamai integration.
Visa Trusted Agent Protocol
AI-Ready Cards. Tokenized credentials. Cloudflare + Akamai partners.
Mastercard Agent Pay Framework
Agentic Tokens + Web Bot Auth. LATAM rollout Dec '25.
Circuit & Chisel $19M AT TABLE
Sept '25. ATXP "HTTP for agents." Ex-Stripe crypto leads. Stripe/Coinbase/Solana investors.
x402 Protocol 100M+ AT TABLE
Coinbase/Cloudflare. 100M+ payments processed. Integrated in Google AP2. HTTP-native.
Skyfire KYA NEW
Know Your Agent. Agent identity + verification protocol.
Protocol War Update: ACP (OpenAI/Stripe) vs UCP (Google) vs ATXP (Circuit & Chisel). ChatGPT checkout LIVE with Etsy. Shopify backing all three. x402 at 100M+ payments. Production > announcements.
L11.2
Network Enablement
Card networks adapting for agents
AllShow all
VisaIntelligent Commerce
MastercardAgent Pay
Network Access
150M+ merchants
Visa Intelligent Commerce 🟡 PILOT AT TABLE
TAP: hundreds of real txns. Asia Pacific + Europe pilots early '26. MCP Server. OpenAI, Microsoft, Anthropic.
Mastercard Agent Pay 🟢 LIVE AT TABLE
First authenticated agentic txns in Australia. Agent Suite Q2 '26. Fiserv integration. Expanding LatAm + APAC.
PayPal Agentic Commerce OCT 25 AT TABLE
Agent Ready + Store Sync. Perplexity partner. Millions of merchants instantly agent-accessible.
Amex Web Bot Auth
Cloudflare partnership. Enterprise agent verification.
L11.3
Agent Wallets & Identity
Credential storage + KYA
AllShow all
Crypto RailsUSDC, stablecoin
Card RailsVisa, Mastercard
AI Buyers
new customer type
Skyfire HOT AT TABLE
$9.5M Coinbase/a16z/Circle. USDC wallets + KYA identity. $50B+ Ripple alumni.
Nekuda NEW
$5M Visa/Amex Ventures. Agentic Mandates. Agent wallet SDK for CARD rails.
Stripe Link HOT
Consumer wallet for agentic commerce. Spending limits, agent permissions.
Catena Labs HOT AT TABLE
$18M a16z. First regulated AI-native FI. Circle co-founder.
Payman AI
Visa-backed. AI agents pay humans. USDC + ACH rails.
Spangle AI $15M
$100M valuation. Ex-Amazon execs. Agentic storefronts for commerce.
Swap Commerce $100M
$100M Series C. Agentic commerce OS. 600+ businesses. Significant scale.
L11.4
Agent Checkout & Execution
Last-mile transaction completion
AllShow all
Live NowChatGPT, Etsy
InfrastructureBuild your own
Execution
agent → purchase
ChatGPT Instant Checkout 🟢 LIVE AT TABLE
OpenAI + Stripe ACP. Etsy, Shopify live. MS Copilot (PayPal+Stripe) LIVE. Perplexity (5K+ merchants) LIVE.
InFlow DEC '25
Agent-native payments. Ex-PayPal team (RubyCoins). Agents onboard + pay autonomously. Zero friction.
Rye HOT
a16z crypto. Universal Checkout API. <5s completion, 99.9% reliability.
Natural $9.8M
Nov '25. B2B agentic payments infra. Logistics, procurement, healthcare.
PayOS 🟢 LIVE
First live Mastercard Agentic Token txn (Sept '25). Agent-driven checkout. Production.
Henry Labs
AI checkout agent. Nekuda-powered. E-commerce automation.
L11.5
MCP Servers
How AI models call payment APIs
AllShow all
Use ExistingStripe, Visa, etc.
Build Your OwnExpose your API
Tool Access
AI → API bridge
Stripe MCP MCP
Official. AI agents create invoices, refunds, customers. Powers agentic suite.
Visa Acceptance MCP MCP
Pilot. Direct network integration for AI agents.
PayPal MCP MCP
Agent Toolkit integration. Checkout, invoicing, disputes.
Fipto MCP MCP
Treasury + stablecoin operations via AI.
Square MCP MCP
POS + invoicing. SMB agentic commerce.
Alpic FR
€6M Sept '25. First MCP-native cloud. Deploy in minutes. Streamroot team. Top 10 SDK contributor.
Stainless
Generate MCP servers from your API. Powers OpenAI SDK.
Speakeasy
OpenAPI → MCP server. Clients: Formance, Mistral.
AAIF NEW
Agentic AI Foundation (Linux Foundation). Governance for MCP + goose (Block) + AGENTS.md (OpenAI).
⚖️ Regulation Watch — Shapes Every Layer
🇺🇸 GENIUS Act
Stablecoin framework: reserves, audits, licensing
Signed Jul '25 → Regs due Jul '26
↳ L10.1, L10.2, L10.3
🇪🇺 MiCA
Crypto-asset licensing, stablecoin caps, CASP rules
Full enforcement Jul 1, 2026
↳ L10.1, L10.2, L10.3, L10.4
🇪🇺 PSD3 / PSR
Open banking 2.0, fraud liability, API standards
Agreement Nov '25 → Compliance '27-28
↳ L2, L7, L8
🇪🇺 CARF / DAC8
Crypto tax reporting, cross-border info exchange
✓ Active Jan 1, 2026
↳ L10.1, L10.2, L3
⚙️ Admin Blocks

What Runs Your Stack

When you unbundle from Stripe/Adyen, you lose their dashboard. You need to rebuild three things.

📊
DATA
What really happened?
Decline codes Settlement IC breakdown Audit trails
Pagos — Payment intelligence
dbt — Transform payment data
Metabase — Open-source BI
Compliance (DORA, MiCA, PSD2)
Vanta — SOC2, DORA evidence
Drata — Continuous monitoring
⚙️
ADMIN
Let me manage it
Tokens Refunds Disputes Sub-merchants
Retool — Custom internal tools
Forest Admin — Back-office on data
Appsmith — Open-source tools
🔄
PROCESS
Automate it
Reconciliation Workflows Retries Dunning
Modern Treasury — Reconciliation
n8n — Workflow automation
Temporal — Durable execution
Compliance Workflow Pattern
Trigger → Analyze → Human Review → Execute
Architecture Principle: Dual-Database
🏦
Banking Ledger
Regulatory source of truth. Immutable. Auditable.
Held by license holder
⟷
Sync
💾
App Database
Feature layer you control. Product logic, user data.
Owned by fintech
💡
Why this matters: Back-office tools (Forest Admin, Retool) operate on your App Database — not the Banking Ledger. You can't "fix" regulated data directly. This is why reconciliation matters, why Formance exists, and why BaaS isn't just "renting accounts."
The pattern: As you go deeper in the stack, operational complexity increases. Admin blocks become essential — not optional.
👤 Use Cases & Clients

Find Your Profile

Your business model determines which building blocks matter most.

🏪
Marketplace / B2B SaaS Platform
Multi-seller splits, escrow, seller payouts
▼
When should I own my ledger?
Full-Stack PSP
Stripe Connect
<€10M GMV
Regulated Platform
Lemonway, Mangopay
Standard splits
BaaS + Own Logic
Formance + Swan
€50M+ GMV
Full Build
Formance + EMI
Split IS product
Product → Supplier Linkage
Seller Payouts → Formance → Swan → Wise
Critical Layers
L3 KYCL7 LedgerL9 SplitsL9 Payouts
⚡
PayFac / Embedded Payments
Embed payments, own merchant relationship
▼
How deep do I go?
PSP Wrapper
Stripe Connect
Fast, their compliance
Orchestrate + Vault
ProcessOut + VGS
Multi-PSP, own tokens
Sponsor Model
BPCE + Duna
Own compliance
Full PayFac
Own license
€500M+ volume
Product → Supplier Linkage
Sub-Merchant Onboard → Persona KYC → Sponsor Bank → Visa/MC
Critical Layers
L3 KYCL5 SponsorL6 VaultL7 Ledger
🏬
Omnichannel Retail
Unify online + POS, one customer view
▼
How do I unify online and in-store?
Single PSP
Adyen Unified
Simplicity
POS Abstraction
Nepting + PSP
Multi-acquirer POS
Unified Vault
VGS + Nepting
Single token
Direct Acquiring
Silverflow + VGS
€100M+, IC++
Critical Layers
L1 POSL4 OrchestrationL6 VaultL5 Direct
🏦
Fintech / Neobank
Issue cards, generate accounts
▼
BaaS wrapper or build the bank?
Full BaaS
Swan, Unit
Fast, their license
BaaS + Ledger
Formance + Swan
Custom logic
Core Banking
Mambu + EMI
Full products
Full Build
Mambu + License
You ARE the bank
Product → Supplier Linkage
Card Issuing → Marqeta → Visa → Bank Sponsor
Critical Layers
L3 KYCL7 LedgerL7 BaaSL7 Cards
🌍
Global Payouts
Pay creators, suppliers, 100+ countries
▼
Traditional rails or crypto?
Traditional FX
Wise, Airwallex
Established corridors
Mass Payout
Payoneer, Tipalti
High volume
Emerging
Thunes, Nium
Africa, LatAm
Stablecoin
Bridge, Lightspark
24/7, zero FX
Critical Layers
L3 IdentityL9 FXL10.3 SettlementL11.2 Agent Wallets
🔗
Crypto Player
Exchanges, wallets, DeFi going compliant
▼
How do I bridge to fiat?
Crypto-Native
DFNS, Fireblocks
Custody only
Fiat Ramp
MoonPay, Sardine
User fiat entry
BaaS
Swan + Chainalysis
Fiat accounts
Full Banking
Mambu + Cards
Crypto bank
Critical Layers
L2 Fiat rampL3 SardineL7 BaaSL10.2 Custody
Real Stacks

Case Studies Coming Soon

Deep dives into how leading companies actually built their payment infrastructure.

Klarna
BNPL → Full Banking License
Shopify
PayFac at $200B+ GMV
Toast
Vertical SaaS → Full Stack
Revolut
Neobank Multi-License
Who's Behind This

Nicolas & Friends

Operators, not consultants. We've built the stacks, not just advised on them.

Curator
Nicolas Devillard
8 years scaling a European PSP from early stage to €100M+ revenue. Grew the team from 15 to 400+. Saw every layer decision firsthand—what worked, what didn't, what we'd do differently.
CRO @ PayPlug (BPCE) €100M+ Revenue Now in NYC
Connect →
Contributors
Friends of the Stack
Payment architects, fintech founders, merchant CTOs, and infrastructure nerds who've lived the build-vs-buy decisions. This isn't theory—it's pattern recognition from the trenches.
Merchants PSP Veterans Fintech Founders Advisory Firms
Philosophy
Challenge the Status Quo
Most payment content is vendor marketing. We're here to show what actually works—from real infrastructure, real trade-offs, real failures. No sponsored content. No affiliate links.
No BS Operator POV Open Source Intel

Want to go deeper?

Stack reviews, infrastructure audits, build-vs-buy decisions. If you're making a call on your payment infrastructure, let's talk.

Book a Call Follow on LinkedIn