Stefan Weyl, Payment Manager at TeamViewer Germany 
Stefan Weyl, Payment Manager at TeamViewer Germany, discussed his participation in a fireside chat with Visa at MPE, where he appreciated the opportunity to address issues directly with Visa, such as payment rejections and error codes, which are critical pain points for the company. For TeamViewer, the biggest challenge this year is the high rejection rates for annual recurring payments in regions like APAC and LATAM, which often come with unclear error codes that are difficult to resolve.
When selecting payment providers, Stefan emphasized that while fees are part of the decision, the key factors include global reach, local acquiring options, alternative payment methods, and especially those that can handle B2B recurring payments. The company also values trustworthiness, size, and direct contact. Once a provider is selected, payment integration has become smoother after integrating a payment orchestration platform. This system allows TeamViewer to connect PSPs more easily, although they are still in the early stages of full integration.
Looking ahead, Stefan is monitoring trends like open banking but noted that it is not suitable for TeamViewer’s B2B enterprise customers, who often require manual payment release due to security protocols. However, the company stays updated on promising trends and explores their applicability.
Ana Reiley, Head of Acceptance Solutions for Europe at Visa 
Ana Reiley, Head of Acceptance Solutions for Europe at Visa, discussed how Visa supports clients with dispute resolution and fraud management. She highlighted that 74% of disputes in Europe are fraud-related, especially with the rise of e-commerce. Visa uses AI to help merchants manage chargebacks and improve the dispute process.
She identified three main challenges for acquirers: managing the complexity of a fragmented payments ecosystem, integrating numerous software providers, and balancing productivity with revenue growth. Visa’s solution, the Visa Acceptance Platform, simplifies these issues by consolidating services into one connection. Reiley also emphasised the need to shift the perception of Visa from a card scheme to a technology provider, which is her key challenge.
Bas Van Donselaar, co-head of consultancy at PaymentGenes 
Bas Van Donselaar, co-head of consultancy at PaymentGenes, discussed how merchants are increasingly adopting fintech strategies. PaymentGenes, based in Amsterdam, provides services like recruitment, interim management, consulting, and training in the payments industry.
Van Donselaar highlighted the benefits of merchants thinking like fintechs, including increased revenue and customer loyalty. He shared examples of software companies, particularly in hospitality, embedding payments into their services, which simplifies processes for small businesses.
However, he cautioned about the risks of embedded finance, citing a failed example of an Austrian supermarket that withdrew its payment service after nine months. He stressed that merchants should focus on solving real customer problems rather than pushing vendor products.
Looking ahead, Van Donselaar sees significant opportunities in in-store payments, as technology in physical retail environments has not evolved as rapidly as e-commerce. He believes there are emerging opportunities to improve in-store checkout experiences and capture market share.
Anne-Marie Dentz, Vice President for Acceptance and Channel Partners at Mastercard 
Anne-Marie Dentz, Vice President for Acceptance and Channel Partners at Mastercard, discussed her role and the company’s initiatives with Russ at MPE. Anne-Marie’s focus at Mastercard is on expanding the acceptance of Mastercard payments, which currently covers 150 million merchants worldwide. She works with partners to grow this acceptance, ensuring secure, seamless transactions by integrating technology and cybersecurity.
Anne-Marie highlighted the theme of her upcoming panel on smart payment strategies, discussing the growing consumer demand for seamless, efficient payment experiences, both online and in-store. She emphasised the importance of merchants offering a diverse mix of payment methods and adopting omnichannel solutions to improve customer loyalty and reduce transaction abandonment.
The biggest challenge for merchants today, according to Anne-Marie, is ensuring smooth transactions without fraud while maintaining high customer satisfaction. She advised merchants to consider new payment solutions, including AI-driven insights, to optimise their strategies and improve the customer journey.
Looking ahead, Anne-Marie identified tokenisation as a major trend, with Mastercard aiming for 100% tokenisation by 2030. This will enable customers to shop online without entering payment credentials, enhancing the shopping experience and reducing abandonment. She expects continued growth in this area, particularly in integrating loyalty and personalisation with payment solutions.
Jüri Laur, Director of Product at Bolt 
Jüri Laur, Director of Product at Bolt, discussed the company’s global expansion into over 50 countries, including recent growth in North America, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. Bolt prioritises speed of market entry, balancing it with cost-efficiency. The company builds strong partnerships to enable rapid launches.
Bolt’s payment strategy focuses on selecting partners offering the best quality-to-cost ratio, with a focus on acceptance rates, global reach, and flexibility. While Bolt primarily uses card payments for flexibility in dynamic pricing, open banking is used for food delivery services, resembling traditional e-commerce. Jüri expressed interest in the development of variable recurring payments to replace card transactions, though he noted that progress in payment technology is slow.
Pragya Jauhari, Senior Product Manager at Booking.com 
Pragya Jauhari, Senior Product Manager at Booking.com, shared her journey into the payments industry, highlighting her background in software engineering and experience with fintech. At Booking.com, she manages B2B payments, ensuring the right amount is paid to partners for reservations.
In a session on embedded finance, Pragya discussed the challenges of partnerships, using the example of the Apple Card, where Apple and Goldman Sachs have a strained relationship despite the card’s success. She emphasized the importance of aligning incentives and metrics between banks and merchants, ensuring both sides are satisfied and have clear exit strategies.
Looking ahead, Pragya is particularly interested in stablecoins, noting their potential to make payments more real-time. She also expressed excitement about staying informed on payment technology trends, staying engaged with industry news and developments.
Simas Simanauskas, Chief Business Officer at ConnectPay 
Simas Simanauskas, Chief Business Officer at ConnectPay, introduced the company as an all-in-one banking solution offering various payment methods, bank accounts, card acquiring, open banking, and card issuance. They focus on embedding these solutions into platforms, helping merchants enhance their payment offerings.
Simas discussed the confusion around embedded finance, noting that the industry focuses more on customer experience, like tokenized cards, rather than embedding actual financial products into merchant platforms. He highlighted the challenge of balancing security and user experience, ensuring that funds are secure while providing a seamless platform for users, especially in regions where trust in new platforms may be low.
He also mentioned his excitement around innovations that match identity with bank accounts, particularly a product they’ve built at ConnectPay. This allows users to log in with their financial credentials, ensuring both authentication and immediate access to a linked bank account for platform transactions. This innovation, he hopes, will gain traction in the market.
