Payment Orchestration: Build Your Own or Off-The-Shelf?

Payment orchestration plays a critical role in optimizing payment operations for companies navigating complex payment ecosystems. For enterprises handling high transaction volumes or operating globally, deciding whether to build a custom payment orchestration system or choose an off-the-shelf solution is paramount. Both approaches have distinct advantages and challenges. If you’re feeling torn or unsure of exactly where to start, use this helpful guide to get to know the options to find the best fit.

What Is Payment Orchestration?

At its core, payment orchestration is a system designed to manage multiple payment providers, optimize transaction routing, enhance success rates, and ensure compliance. By centralizing and automating the payment process, businesses gain better visibility and control over their transactions.

For companies striving to streamline their operations, improve customer experiences, and boost transaction success rates, smart payment orchestration solutions is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity.

Why Businesses Need Payment Orchestration

As businesses grow, so do their payment complexities. Payment orchestration systems help by offering:

• Optimized Transaction Routing: Automatically route transactions to the most cost-effective or reliable payment provider.
• Fraud Management: Streamline fraud detection and prevention across multiple gateways.
• Centralized Control: Monitor, analyze, and manage all payments through a unified platform.
• Scalability: Seamlessly support expansion into new markets and adapt to growing transaction volumes.

These benefits translate into significant operational and financial efficiency for enterprises with global footprints or high-volume transactions.

POP Build vs. Buy: Key Considerations

When deciding between building a payment orchestration system or opting for an off-the-shelf solution, several factors come into play:

1. Complexity, Control, and Customization

• Build: A custom-built system allows unparalleled control and customization to align with unique business workflows and requirements.
• Buy: Off-the-shelf platforms, while less customizable, often provide API-driven flexibility that covers most standard use cases.

2. Cost and Budget

• Build: Custom solutions require a more significant upfront investment for development and maintenance, including hiring or expanding an in-house technical team.
• Buy: Predictable subscription-based pricing with lower upfront costs, though long-term expenses can add up for businesses with high transaction volumes.

3. Scalability and Future Growth

• Build: Custom solutions can be tailored to specific scalability needs, but systems will require ongoing updates as your business grows.
• Buy: Off-the-shelf systems are pre-designed for scalability and include regular updates to support future growth. However, updates are released according to the whims of the SaaS provider, which may not always align with the needs or timelines of their clients.

4. Location, Location, Locale

• Build: An in-house solution can be tailored to accommodate specific regional payment preferences, local compliance requirements, and unique methods like country-specific payment gateways or currencies, making it ideal for businesses with complex global or localized needs.
• Buy: Off-the-shelf platforms often come pre-integrated with support for multiple regions and payment methods, making them a quick solution for global operations. However, they may lack flexibility for niche markets or evolving local regulation

5. Time to Market

• Build: Development and deployment can take months or even years.
• Buy: Pre-built systems enable rapid implementation, often within weeks.

6. Maintenance and Support

• Build: Your team is responsible for compliance, security updates, and troubleshooting.
• Buy: Providers handle updates, compliance, and support, reducing the burden on internal resources.

The Case for Building a Custom Payment Orchestration Platform

Benefits

• Freedom to Work with Multiple Providers: Avoid vendor lock-in, optimize costs, and ensure failover redundancy with intelligent routing and the freedom to choose!
• Complete Control Over Features: Tailor the system to your unique needs and retain the ability to adjust or expand functionality.
• Enhanced Data Security: Maintain direct control over data security and compliance practices.
• Long-Term Cost Savings: Reduce or eliminate recurring vendor fees, and excessive transaction and interchange fees, which can add up for high-volume businesses.

Drawbacks

• High upfront development costs and resource demands.
• Longer time to market.
• Ongoing maintenance and support responsibilities.

The Case for Choosing an Off-the-Shelf Payment Orchestration Solution

Benefits

• Faster Time to Market: Ready-to-deploy solutions enable quick optimization of payment processes.
• Cost-Effective Budgeting: Subscription models offer predictable pricing.
• Scalability and Updates: Providers ensure the platform evolves to meet your growing needs.
• Dedicated Support and Reduced Liability: Benefit from professional support and shift compliance responsibilities to the provider.

Drawbacks

• Limited customization options and control over features.
• Long-term costs may exceed those of a custom solution.
• Lack of competitive differentiation, as anyone can use the same platform.

How to Decide: A Checklist for Businesses Considering Payment Orchestration

1. Assess Your Unique Needssome text
   • What is your transaction volume?
   • Do you operate globally or in niche markets?
   • How much customization do you require?
2. Calculate Total Cost of Ownershipsome text
   • Compare the lifetime costs of building (development, staffing, maintenance) versus buying (subscription fees, integrations).
3. Evaluate Long-Term Goalssome text
   • Are you scaling rapidly or operating in a complex regulatory environment? Custom may be best.
   • Are you seeking a quick, reliable solution with minimal in-house effort? Off-the-shelf might be the answer.

Summing Up

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to payment orchestration. Your decision will depend on your business’s specific needs, budget, and growth trajectory. Custom-built platforms offer control and long-term savings but demand significant resources and expertise. Off-the-shelf solutions provide speed, scalability, and convenience but come with long-term cost considerations and limited customization.

Ready to Optimize Your Payments?

Whether you’re exploring a custom solution or an off-the-shelf platform, Clear Function can help. Schedule a free call to learn more about our payment orchestration services and how they can align with your goals and empower your business.