The evolution of the acquiring business is one of the best case studies of gradual but material change in the structure of financial services. The disregard that many banks had for merchant services led to many bad strategy decisions (exit, partnerships, JVs, consortiums) but also to a lack of flexibility when the value of being at the commercial nexus became apparent (loyalty, rewards, BNPL, etc). As always a great read Andy.
The evolution of the acquiring business is one of the best case studies of gradual but material change in the structure of financial services. The disregard that many banks had for merchant services led to many bad strategy decisions (exit, partnerships, JVs, consortiums) but also to a lack of flexibility when the value of being at the commercial nexus became apparent (loyalty, rewards, BNPL, etc). As always a great read Andy.