April 9, 2025 • 21 mins
Andrew Riabchuk's journey from building a payment gateway prototype as a computer science student in Ukraine to founding Akurateco—a global payment orchestration platform—reveals how technical expertise shapes fintech innovation. During our conversation, Andrew offers a fascinating perspective on what payment orchestration truly means beyond simple transaction routing: it's about creating value, reducing complexity, and enabling businesses to scale globally with minimal friction.
The technical side of payments is becoming increasingly sophisticated while consumer experiences grow more seamless. Andrew explains how Akurateco navigates this paradox by providing a platform that handles the complexity behind the scenes, allowing their clients—payment service providers, banks, and enterprise merchants—to focus on their core business. With over 50 pre-integrated financial partners accessible through a single integration point, businesses can quickly expand into new markets and offer localized payment methods without the traditional technical burden.
What stands out most about Andrew's approach is the emphasis on partnership over mere service provision. Their "payment team as a service" concept reflects a deeper understanding that payments success requires both advanced technology and human expertise. As payment verticals become increasingly specialized for specific industries, and as cryptocurrency gradually moves toward mainstream adoption, Andrew's insights offer a valuable roadmap for navigating the evolving payments landscape.
Want to learn more about streamlining your payment operations or explore how payment orchestration could transform your business? Connect with Andrew and the Akurateco team to discover strategies that could simplify your technical infrastructure while expanding your global reach.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to the Leaders in Payments podcast,
where we talk to C-level leadersfrom across the payments
landscape.
We'll be discussing theproducts and services that
impact the payment space today,as well as trends and
predictions for the future ofpayments.
We will also hear stories fromour guests about their journeys
to the top.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hello everyone and welcome to the Leaders in
Payments podcast.
I'm your host, greg Myers, andon today's show we have a very
special guest, andrew Ryabchuk,the founder and CTO of Acurateco
.
So welcome to the show, andrew.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Thank you for the introduction.
It's great to be here today,Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Well, why don't we start out by having you tell the
audience a little bit aboutyourself, maybe where you're
from, where you grew up, whereyou went to school, a few things
like that?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
I'm Andrew Repchuk, founder and CTO of Acquateco,
where we help businesses tosimplify payment management and
make transactions smoother fortheir customers.
So I grew up in Kiev, inUkraine.
I'm Ukrainian.
I earned my computer sciencedegree from Kiev Polytechnic
University, so my fascinationwith payments began early on, I
(01:04):
would say, so I might say, that,with University Friend, we have
created the prototype of thepayment gateway back in
university, the other toolrelated to payments not only the
payment gateway which set me ona path that kept me deeply
involved in the paymentsindustry ever since my
professional journey in thefield started in 2007.
(01:27):
It was the launch of thepayment service provider,
followed by a venture into thecredit sector.
Later on, I also launched theonline media online payment
magazine related to payments,obviously, which is one of the
biggest on the post-Sovietlandscape.
Always years of work on thedifferent payment related
businesses, learning about theindustry, challenges and
(01:47):
opportunities.
So then, in 2019, because ofthese partners and having
already some background insub-software, already working
and tested one, I decided tochannel our expertise into the
technical side of payments,which led us to establish
CoreuraTeco as a standaloneentity.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Okay, well, tell us what exactly AcuraTeco does.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
AcuraTeco is actually .
It's the official name and it'sa payment orchestration
platform for payment serviceproviders, banks and large
enterprise-level merchants.
So we specialize in paymentorchestration, white-labeled
payment gate solutions andessentially we help businesses
streamline their paymentprocesses.
At AccordTech, we currentlyoffer around 50 pre-integrated
(02:35):
banks and payment providers orany other financial partners,
because we can work with anytransaction-based flow.
So it's not only cards ortransfers, it could be crypto or
mobile carrier billing orwhatever which businesses can
integrate with one integrationto our platform without being
locked into the single option.
Meet and they will meet localpayment methods In Europe, for
(02:56):
instance, cards, mobile walletsin Africa, bank transfers in
Asia all while ensuring the sameexperience for their customers,
instead of negotiating multiplecontracts not even contracts,
but multiple paymentintegrations.
(03:16):
Handle integrations you knowthose separately, by themselves,
in-house.
They cannot connect all ofthese, as they can connect all
of these through our platformwith one single integration,
which effectively saves themtime, reduces costs, allows them
to scale much, much faster, butstill the business negotiations
stay on them.
So we're covering only thetechnical part.
(03:38):
Also, security and scalabilityof the platform is something
also we can take very seriouslyat Accorateco.
That's why we have the PCI DSSlevel 1 certification and
currently now we are in thestage of updating our annual
certificate and saying thatcertification is changing this
(03:59):
year from the previous version 3to front-to-reverse version 4.0
to 4.0.1.
I would say it's challenging,but we do this on a annual basis
.
The second important thing forus it's the scalability of the
platform, because actually it'sthe third generation of the
platform and we had already two,obviously and this one is based
(04:23):
on the microservices, with themost recent databases and with
the ability to move thisinstallation from any cloud or
even the bare metal, because ourown SaaS solution is working on
bare metal, not on the privatecloud or public cloud, but we
also have installations onpublic clouds for our customers,
(04:44):
so this scalability is anotherdimension.
So we put a lot of efforts anda lot of our expertise.
We operate on a global scale,but so far, marketing-wise and
sales-wise, our focus isexpanding on presence in Europe
and the MENA region.
Our team is spread out aroundthe world.
Half of our team is still inUkraine because originally, me
(05:09):
and my founders are from Ukraine, so I mean, I have two
co-founders, so at least threeof us have significant
experience in payments.
Nowadays I live not in Ukraine,I live somewhere in a plane
between Portugal, spain andother countries.
So beyond I mean, obviously, wehave a company in Ukraine, but
(05:32):
beyond Ukraine, we have officesin Portugal, estonia and the
Netherlands, which helps us tobetter serve our international
clients.
We also recently began hiringspecialists from Africa to
strengthen our presence there,because it's emerging markets
quite important for us.
Well, and to summarize all whatI said, our goal at Accord Tech
(05:52):
is simple to provide reliableand innovative payment solutions
.
That will also require us tofocus on the core businesses
while we take care of theirpayment flows and payments at
all.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
You know the word payment orchestration.
I think it's kind of thrownaround a lot in this industry.
So how do you define paymentorchestration?
Speaker 3 (06:11):
The payment orchestration, by its meaning,
for a lot of people is nothingmore than the smart routing, so
it's being able to sendtransaction to the most optimal
way, whatever it means by that.
So the cost optimization,increase of the acceptance rate
and so on.
But since it has started thepayment orchestration term and
(06:34):
any businesses, any new, let'ssay, landscape, it's very fast
changing and developing.
So nowadays the paymentorchestration it's not just
ability to outsource allcomplexity of technology for the
other company and not justbeing able to send transaction
to the optimal route or to makethe other, I would say, tricks
(06:58):
like cascading and so on, butit's just also ability to run
and to launch new productsprovided by schemes, by Visa,
mastercard, new payment methods,expand to new markets faster,
to implement the payments intoyour product in the most
original and native way.
Because just recently I had aconversation with one of my
(07:21):
friends who is currently aleader of one of the very famous
companies specializing inmarketing SaaS software, asking
him that what was your, let'ssay, the best years?
He told me that it was, youknow, some years, like some
years, 10 years ago or whateverand what was the most
interesting and promisingfeatures or part of your
products which gave you the bestoutcome.
(07:43):
And he started talking and hetold me he gave me examples
about payments, about how he haschanged subscriptions and those
subscriptions made him doublein revenue and so on.
So it's not about his product,it's about payments.
Yes, and it was 10 years ago.
So the payment illustration forme is just something which can
(08:03):
bring you much more value withmuch less cost.
I know that it sounds fantasticlike a fairy tale, but it's
possible.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So what would you say ?
Differentiates you guys fromyour competitors out there?
Speaker 3 (08:15):
This is a great question.
I mean, what sets AcroTicaapart?
It's our technical expertise,because together with our
co-founders, we have more than50 years of cumulative
experience in financial sectorand particularly in payments.
Another thing is our focus oncustomers and our drive for
continuous innovation for them.
So we see ourselves as not justa payment software.
(08:38):
We are a true partner inhelping our clients overcome
their unique challenges.
So our approach is all aboutunderstanding what each client
needs and then tailoringsolution our solution to their
needs and to meet theirrequirements, and also to
understand what exactly theyneed now and what they will need
afterwards and to put it inkind of roadmap and to improve
(09:04):
this.
This is important thing.
So also we are trying, let'ssay, to be on the edge in
regards to the innovations, andwhen I say innovation, that's
about the most recent productswhich would grow the value of
our platform to our customers.
So, for instance, let's takethe most common companies which
(09:26):
we talk about Payments, visa,mastercard, amex also, but Visa
and MasterCard massivelybuilding infrastructure and new
products much faster than it was10 years ago.
So our goal is to give ourclients ability to use these
products or to try thoseproducts with minimal cost,
(09:48):
because all those products arededicated to make the life of
the consumer, of the cardholder,easier, to make the payments
more seamless and to make itfaster.
And let's say, 20 years ago itwas swiping of the card and all
whatever.
Then it was cheap, then it wasNFC, now it's a phone, now it's
(10:08):
a watch and blah, blah blah.
So it becomes easier, buttechnology behind that it's more
and more and more sophisticatedand to implement it in your
product it's more and moresophisticated.
So we help our customers withjust a few clicks to try it.
They will see will it behelpful for them or not, will it
(10:29):
be, let's say, somethingsignificant for their business
or not.
But still, they can haveability, they should have
ability to try with it.
So this is also why I'llforward DNA.
Another thing it's a support,because it's not so much
important how sophisticated isyour product.
If your product is even verysophisticated, the most
(10:52):
important thing is the supportlevel you offer to your
customers, because without thatthey will not be able to learn
on it, to use it in allvariations or whatever.
So we put a lot of effort forsupport, but beyond that, to
learn on it, to use it in allvariations of whatever.
So we put a lot of effort forsupport.
But beyond that, we do not justprovide support and support
integration, we provideexpertise.
(11:16):
We have what we call the paymentteam as a service.
So this is essentially a teamof payment professionals who
step in to understand thebusiness of our clients, to
navigate them through thepayment challenges.
So, again, it's not just abouthaving the right tools, it's
having the right people tosupport them on every step of
the way.
But, last but not the least,beyond our technical
capabilities, our companyculture is what really makes a
(11:38):
difference.
So we always aim to create anenvironment where everyone has
the opportunity to grow in theway that works best for them.
I think it's important torecognize that we have areas for
improvement to new challenges,opportunities to learn and to
get better.
I think that it's veryimportant.
I believe that our customersfeel that it helps not only for
(12:00):
us to grow, but for ourcustomers, our clients.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
So let's talk about the future of payments.
A little bit helps not only forus to grow, but for our
customers, our clients.
So let's talk about the futureof payments a little bit.
Speaker 3 (12:10):
Where do you see the payments industry headed, say,
in the next three to five years?
The payments industry movingtoward even greater speed and
seamlessness in the next fewyears, as it was before.
I mean the direction everythingis moving toward transaction is
as effortless as possible andas seamless as possible for
consumers.
As effortless as possible andas seamless as possible for
consumers.
So, as I said, while on thesurface it looks like it gets
easier, behind the scenes thepayment process and the software
(12:31):
and complexity ofimplementation of the software
is becoming even more.
It's harder and we shouldrequire the greater expertise
and I think that it willcontinue to be like that.
So it's going to be probablynew ways of payment, like the
face recognition or any other,which gives even easier ways to
(12:54):
combine payment methods whichhave been before.
This is first, and I mean forus it's a challenge because it
needs more technologies, moretechnologies implemented on the
platform.
What else it's for consumers?
I think that from the businessside, it's about verticalization
.
What does it mean?
(13:16):
It appears more and more paymentproviders which specialize on
some specific, sometimes veryniche, industry.
So there are payment providersfor marketplaces, there are
payment providers for SaaSsoftware.
There are payment providers forfood and delivery services,
there are payment providers forcompanies like Uber and Bolt and
(13:36):
so on, which means that thenormal providers, or even the
great company like Stripe or RDNthey sometimes on some certain
level of growth of the company.
They cannot provide thisvariety of features or variety
of combination of features andsupport and the other things
(13:57):
which are required from thecompany.
So I think that it's justbeginning and it's going to be
like in 5-10 years.
It's going to be like in five,10 years.
It's going to be great bigcompanies, payment companies,
which is specializing for very,very narrow niche.
And for us, I mean,nevertheless, that we do payment
orchestration, our niche, thatwe do payment orchestration for
payment providers and banks andfor large enterprise merchants,
(14:20):
which normally would also beconsidered as a payment provider
, because sooner or later theycome to the idea to create the
payment provider in-house.
And for us it's also a paymentprovider because there are our
competitors which are doing agreat job and they are
specializing in SMBs or they aredoing orchestration for
(14:40):
marketplaces and so on.
So it's verticalization.
It's not only relates topayment providers, which are our
clients, but also for us.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
What do you think about crypto becoming a more
accepted payment method?
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Let's dive into the history.
It's all been started withBitcoin and the Bitcoin.
Nowadays it's not even forpeople who are not so much aware
about crypto.
First of all, they heard aboutBitcoin, but they also
understand that Bitcoin couldnot be used as a payment method
(15:13):
for average transaction becauseit was created and dedicated for
different things.
But there are a lot of newblockchains which are much
faster, even the LeasingMastercard.
Nevertheless of all, let's say,questions related to Solana,
for instance, and to thisblockchain, it's really fast and
sometimes it's faster thanLeasing Mastercard by the
(15:36):
official TPS.
They are, let's say, they'reconfirming as a benchmark they
have In theory.
Yes, of course, I truly believethat the crypto will become a
very important part of ourday-to-day routines and
operations for consumers allaround the globe, not even
related to crypto or to anybusiness related to crypto, but
(16:01):
practically when?
When?
I don't know.
I'm sure it's going to be ayear within the next five, 10
years, but in what form?
Who will be the winner?
This is tough question.
I'm not ready to answer, butdefinitely, yeah, it will be
there.
Speaker 2 (16:19):
Well, let's switch gears a little bit and talk
about you, and you mentioned alittle bit of your professional
journey, so maybe tell us aboutthe founding story, how the
three of you came together andwhy you started the company.
Speaker 3 (16:31):
Yeah, as I said earlier, I've been founding
before a few companies relatedto payments and obviously I had
employees.
I have partners, friends andtwo of my co-founders I mean,
eventually, they've been workingonly in one company and the
other company Then Vladimir ismy co-founder.
(16:52):
He was director of paymentprovider back in the time and
Alexandra, she was operationaldirector in another payment
provider, having great expertise, having great people I can rely
on, I can trust.
So we've combined together ourefforts.
So that's how we created theCoreTech.
I think that the idea behindthat was not only driven by,
(17:16):
let's say, the whole complexityof the payment provider nowadays
to become, let's say, globalbecause of the licensing issues,
compliance issues and so on,and to concentrate on the
technical part of work, but alsoto share our expertise.
Since we are servicing paymentproviders, we have a lot of
knowledge to share.
(17:37):
This is one of the goals behindcreating OphotoTech, which is
just to share this expertise tomake the payments and the life
of people who are doing paymentsa bit easier and better.
As I said, having such a bigexpertise, having such a
background for creating a reallygood product, made us the idea
(17:58):
and brought us the idea tocreate a product.
Speaker 2 (18:01):
So what are some things you're passionate about?
Maybe one work-related passionand one personal passion.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
If I had to name something, I would say that I'm
passionate about buildingsustainable businesses, creating
(18:26):
something that not only workstoday but continues to evolve
and provide value in the longrun.
Ability to adapt and then stayrelevant in fast-changing
industry is something I findreally important.
On a personal level, I'msomeone who's motivated by
results by processes as well,but processes are dedicated to
(18:48):
results, it's no doubt for me.
So I find a lot of fulfillmentin setting goals and working
towards them in business, inother aspects of my life if I do
sport or whatever and soreaching certain milestones and
seeing tangible progress issomething that keeps me moving
forward.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
So, andrew, if someone maybe they're just
graduating from university orfrom college and they're looking
for maybe their first job andthey come to you and say, hey,
I'm interested in building mycareer in the payments industry
what advice would you give themto help them be successful?
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I think the most important thing is to choose a
path and stay focused on it.
Stay focused, stay busy, Likeit was recently in a Netflix
film about Arnold SchwarzeneggerIn payments.
You know there are so manydirections you can take
Compliance for prevention,payment technology.
My advice is pick the area thatexcites you, go deep and become
(19:47):
really good in it.
So payment history is broad andit's getting only broader and
constantly evolved, but if youcommit to mastering a specific
area, you'll have a much betterchance to building a successful
career.
Nevertheless, you plan tocreate your own business or you
plan to work as an employee, somy advice would be to
(20:07):
continuously refine your skills.
So stay curious, stay busy andalways look for ways to improve.
So, whether it's payments orany other field, becoming a true
professional in your area willopen you the right opportunity.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Okay, yeah, I think that's great advice.
So, before we close out theshow, is there anything else
you'd like to discuss?
Speaker 3 (20:27):
I don't think that we have time to discuss everything
I want to discuss, but I thinkthat the payment industry is not
, you know, something boringfinancials related thing.
It's really exciting area andit's also the landscape where
everyone, almost everyone, canfind their path, and it's also
the landscape where everyone,almost everyone, can find their
(20:48):
path.
It's just the beginning.
I believe I do not rememberwhere but I read recently that
every big business should become, to some certain level of
extent, to become a financialcompany, a financial startup,
because the payments is justsuch a part of product as
anything else you'll buildbefore.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
Well, andrew, thank you so much for being on the
show today.
I know your time is veryvaluable, so thank you so much
for being here.
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Thank you, Greg, Thank you everyone.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
And to all your listeners out there.
I thank you for your time aswell, and until the next story.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
Thank you for joining us this week on the Leaders in
Payments podcast.
Make sure you visit our websiteat leadersinpaymentscom, where
you can subscribe to the showand where you'll find our show
notes.
If you enjoyed listening,please share on your social
(21:40):
channels as well.
Welcome to the Leaders in Payments podcast,
where we talk to C-level leadersfrom across the payments
landscape.
We'll be discussing theproducts and services that
impact the payment space today,as well as trends and
predictions for the future ofpayments.
We will also hear stories fromour guests about their journeys
to the top.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hello everyone and welcome to the Leaders in
Payments podcast.
I'm your host, greg Myers, andon today's show we have a very
special guest, andrew Ryabchuk,the founder and CTO of Acurateco
.
So welcome to the show, andrew.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
Thank you for the introduction.
It's great to be here today,Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Well, why don't we start out by having you tell the
audience a little bit aboutyourself, maybe where you're
from, where you grew up, whereyou went to school, a few things
like that?
Speaker 3 (00:42):
I'm Andrew Repchuk, founder and CTO of Acquateco,
where we help businesses tosimplify payment management and
make transactions smoother fortheir customers.
So I grew up in Kiev, inUkraine.
I'm Ukrainian.
I earned my computer sciencedegree from Kiev Polytechnic
University, so my fascinationwith payments began early on, I
(01:04):
would say, so I might say, that,with University Friend, we have
created the prototype of thepayment gateway back in
university, the other toolrelated to payments not only the
payment gateway which set me ona path that kept me deeply
involved in the paymentsindustry ever since my
professional journey in thefield started in 2007.
(01:27):
It was the launch of thepayment service provider,
followed by a venture into thecredit sector.
Later on, I also launched theonline media online payment
magazine related to payments,obviously, which is one of the
biggest on the post-Sovietlandscape.
Always years of work on thedifferent payment related
businesses, learning about theindustry, challenges and
(01:47):
opportunities.
So then, in 2019, because ofthese partners and having
already some background insub-software, already working
and tested one, I decided tochannel our expertise into the
technical side of payments,which led us to establish
CoreuraTeco as a standaloneentity.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Okay, well, tell us what exactly AcuraTeco does.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
AcuraTeco is actually .
It's the official name and it'sa payment orchestration
platform for payment serviceproviders, banks and large
enterprise-level merchants.
So we specialize in paymentorchestration, white-labeled
payment gate solutions andessentially we help businesses
streamline their paymentprocesses.
At AccordTech, we currentlyoffer around 50 pre-integrated
(02:35):
banks and payment providers orany other financial partners,
because we can work with anytransaction-based flow.
So it's not only cards ortransfers, it could be crypto or
mobile carrier billing orwhatever which businesses can
integrate with one integrationto our platform without being
locked into the single option.
Meet and they will meet localpayment methods In Europe, for
(02:56):
instance, cards, mobile walletsin Africa, bank transfers in
Asia all while ensuring the sameexperience for their customers,
instead of negotiating multiplecontracts not even contracts,
but multiple paymentintegrations.
(03:16):
Handle integrations you knowthose separately, by themselves,
in-house.
They cannot connect all ofthese, as they can connect all
of these through our platformwith one single integration,
which effectively saves themtime, reduces costs, allows them
to scale much, much faster, butstill the business negotiations
stay on them.
So we're covering only thetechnical part.
(03:38):
Also, security and scalabilityof the platform is something
also we can take very seriouslyat Accorateco.
That's why we have the PCI DSSlevel 1 certification and
currently now we are in thestage of updating our annual
certificate and saying thatcertification is changing this
(03:59):
year from the previous version 3to front-to-reverse version 4.0
to 4.0.1.
I would say it's challenging,but we do this on a annual basis
.
The second important thing forus it's the scalability of the
platform, because actually it'sthe third generation of the
platform and we had already two,obviously and this one is based
(04:23):
on the microservices, with themost recent databases and with
the ability to move thisinstallation from any cloud or
even the bare metal, because ourown SaaS solution is working on
bare metal, not on the privatecloud or public cloud, but we
also have installations onpublic clouds for our customers,
(04:44):
so this scalability is anotherdimension.
So we put a lot of efforts anda lot of our expertise.
We operate on a global scale,but so far, marketing-wise and
sales-wise, our focus isexpanding on presence in Europe
and the MENA region.
Our team is spread out aroundthe world.
Half of our team is still inUkraine because originally, me
(05:09):
and my founders are from Ukraine, so I mean, I have two
co-founders, so at least threeof us have significant
experience in payments.
Nowadays I live not in Ukraine,I live somewhere in a plane
between Portugal, spain andother countries.
So beyond I mean, obviously, wehave a company in Ukraine, but
(05:32):
beyond Ukraine, we have officesin Portugal, estonia and the
Netherlands, which helps us tobetter serve our international
clients.
We also recently began hiringspecialists from Africa to
strengthen our presence there,because it's emerging markets
quite important for us.
Well, and to summarize all whatI said, our goal at Accord Tech
(05:52):
is simple to provide reliableand innovative payment solutions
.
That will also require us tofocus on the core businesses
while we take care of theirpayment flows and payments at
all.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
You know the word payment orchestration.
I think it's kind of thrownaround a lot in this industry.
So how do you define paymentorchestration?
Speaker 3 (06:11):
The payment orchestration, by its meaning,
for a lot of people is nothingmore than the smart routing, so
it's being able to sendtransaction to the most optimal
way, whatever it means by that.
So the cost optimization,increase of the acceptance rate
and so on.
But since it has started thepayment orchestration term and
(06:34):
any businesses, any new, let'ssay, landscape, it's very fast
changing and developing.
So nowadays the paymentorchestration it's not just
ability to outsource allcomplexity of technology for the
other company and not justbeing able to send transaction
to the optimal route or to makethe other, I would say, tricks
(06:58):
like cascading and so on, butit's just also ability to run
and to launch new productsprovided by schemes, by Visa,
mastercard, new payment methods,expand to new markets faster,
to implement the payments intoyour product in the most
original and native way.
Because just recently I had aconversation with one of my
(07:21):
friends who is currently aleader of one of the very famous
companies specializing inmarketing SaaS software, asking
him that what was your, let'ssay, the best years?
He told me that it was, youknow, some years, like some
years, 10 years ago or whateverand what was the most
interesting and promisingfeatures or part of your
products which gave you the bestoutcome.
(07:43):
And he started talking and hetold me he gave me examples
about payments, about how he haschanged subscriptions and those
subscriptions made him doublein revenue and so on.
So it's not about his product,it's about payments.
Yes, and it was 10 years ago.
So the payment illustration forme is just something which can
(08:03):
bring you much more value withmuch less cost.
I know that it sounds fantasticlike a fairy tale, but it's
possible.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
So what would you say ?
Differentiates you guys fromyour competitors out there?
Speaker 3 (08:15):
This is a great question.
I mean, what sets AcroTicaapart?
It's our technical expertise,because together with our
co-founders, we have more than50 years of cumulative
experience in financial sectorand particularly in payments.
Another thing is our focus oncustomers and our drive for
continuous innovation for them.
So we see ourselves as not justa payment software.
(08:38):
We are a true partner inhelping our clients overcome
their unique challenges.
So our approach is all aboutunderstanding what each client
needs and then tailoringsolution our solution to their
needs and to meet theirrequirements, and also to
understand what exactly theyneed now and what they will need
afterwards and to put it inkind of roadmap and to improve
(09:04):
this.
This is important thing.
So also we are trying, let'ssay, to be on the edge in
regards to the innovations, andwhen I say innovation, that's
about the most recent productswhich would grow the value of
our platform to our customers.
So, for instance, let's takethe most common companies which
(09:26):
we talk about Payments, visa,mastercard, amex also, but Visa
and MasterCard massivelybuilding infrastructure and new
products much faster than it was10 years ago.
So our goal is to give ourclients ability to use these
products or to try thoseproducts with minimal cost,
(09:48):
because all those products arededicated to make the life of
the consumer, of the cardholder,easier, to make the payments
more seamless and to make itfaster.
And let's say, 20 years ago itwas swiping of the card and all
whatever.
Then it was cheap, then it wasNFC, now it's a phone, now it's
(10:08):
a watch and blah, blah blah.
So it becomes easier, buttechnology behind that it's more
and more and more sophisticatedand to implement it in your
product it's more and moresophisticated.
So we help our customers withjust a few clicks to try it.
They will see will it behelpful for them or not, will it
(10:29):
be, let's say, somethingsignificant for their business
or not.
But still, they can haveability, they should have
ability to try with it.
So this is also why I'llforward DNA.
Another thing it's a support,because it's not so much
important how sophisticated isyour product.
If your product is even verysophisticated, the most
(10:52):
important thing is the supportlevel you offer to your
customers, because without thatthey will not be able to learn
on it, to use it in allvariations or whatever.
So we put a lot of effort forsupport, but beyond that, to
learn on it, to use it in allvariations of whatever.
So we put a lot of effort forsupport.
But beyond that, we do not justprovide support and support
integration, we provideexpertise.
(11:16):
We have what we call the paymentteam as a service.
So this is essentially a teamof payment professionals who
step in to understand thebusiness of our clients, to
navigate them through thepayment challenges.
So, again, it's not just abouthaving the right tools, it's
having the right people tosupport them on every step of
the way.
But, last but not the least,beyond our technical
capabilities, our companyculture is what really makes a
(11:38):
difference.
So we always aim to create anenvironment where everyone has
the opportunity to grow in theway that works best for them.
I think it's important torecognize that we have areas for
improvement to new challenges,opportunities to learn and to
get better.
I think that it's veryimportant.
I believe that our customersfeel that it helps not only for
(12:00):
us to grow, but for ourcustomers, our clients.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
So let's talk about the future of payments.
A little bit helps not only forus to grow, but for our
customers, our clients.
So let's talk about the futureof payments a little bit.
Speaker 3 (12:10):
Where do you see the payments industry headed, say,
in the next three to five years?
The payments industry movingtoward even greater speed and
seamlessness in the next fewyears, as it was before.
I mean the direction everythingis moving toward transaction is
as effortless as possible andas seamless as possible for
consumers.
As effortless as possible andas seamless as possible for
consumers.
So, as I said, while on thesurface it looks like it gets
easier, behind the scenes thepayment process and the software
(12:31):
and complexity ofimplementation of the software
is becoming even more.
It's harder and we shouldrequire the greater expertise
and I think that it willcontinue to be like that.
So it's going to be probablynew ways of payment, like the
face recognition or any other,which gives even easier ways to
(12:54):
combine payment methods whichhave been before.
This is first, and I mean forus it's a challenge because it
needs more technologies, moretechnologies implemented on the
platform.
What else it's for consumers?
I think that from the businessside, it's about verticalization
.
What does it mean?
(13:16):
It appears more and more paymentproviders which specialize on
some specific, sometimes veryniche, industry.
So there are payment providersfor marketplaces, there are
payment providers for SaaSsoftware.
There are payment providers forfood and delivery services,
there are payment providers forcompanies like Uber and Bolt and
(13:36):
so on, which means that thenormal providers, or even the
great company like Stripe or RDNthey sometimes on some certain
level of growth of the company.
They cannot provide thisvariety of features or variety
of combination of features andsupport and the other things
(13:57):
which are required from thecompany.
So I think that it's justbeginning and it's going to be
like in 5-10 years.
It's going to be like in five,10 years.
It's going to be great bigcompanies, payment companies,
which is specializing for very,very narrow niche.
And for us, I mean,nevertheless, that we do payment
orchestration, our niche, thatwe do payment orchestration for
payment providers and banks andfor large enterprise merchants,
(14:20):
which normally would also beconsidered as a payment provider
, because sooner or later theycome to the idea to create the
payment provider in-house.
And for us it's also a paymentprovider because there are our
competitors which are doing agreat job and they are
specializing in SMBs or they aredoing orchestration for
(14:40):
marketplaces and so on.
So it's verticalization.
It's not only relates topayment providers, which are our
clients, but also for us.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
What do you think about crypto becoming a more
accepted payment method?
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Let's dive into the history.
It's all been started withBitcoin and the Bitcoin.
Nowadays it's not even forpeople who are not so much aware
about crypto.
First of all, they heard aboutBitcoin, but they also
understand that Bitcoin couldnot be used as a payment method
(15:13):
for average transaction becauseit was created and dedicated for
different things.
But there are a lot of newblockchains which are much
faster, even the LeasingMastercard.
Nevertheless of all, let's say,questions related to Solana,
for instance, and to thisblockchain, it's really fast and
sometimes it's faster thanLeasing Mastercard by the
(15:36):
official TPS.
They are, let's say, they'reconfirming as a benchmark they
have In theory.
Yes, of course, I truly believethat the crypto will become a
very important part of ourday-to-day routines and
operations for consumers allaround the globe, not even
related to crypto or to anybusiness related to crypto, but
(16:01):
practically when?
When?
I don't know.
I'm sure it's going to be ayear within the next five, 10
years, but in what form?
Who will be the winner?
This is tough question.
I'm not ready to answer, butdefinitely, yeah, it will be
there.
Speaker 2 (16:19):
Well, let's switch gears a little bit and talk
about you, and you mentioned alittle bit of your professional
journey, so maybe tell us aboutthe founding story, how the
three of you came together andwhy you started the company.
Speaker 3 (16:31):
Yeah, as I said earlier, I've been founding
before a few companies relatedto payments and obviously I had
employees.
I have partners, friends andtwo of my co-founders I mean,
eventually, they've been workingonly in one company and the
other company Then Vladimir ismy co-founder.
(16:52):
He was director of paymentprovider back in the time and
Alexandra, she was operationaldirector in another payment
provider, having great expertise, having great people I can rely
on, I can trust.
So we've combined together ourefforts.
So that's how we created theCoreTech.
I think that the idea behindthat was not only driven by,
(17:16):
let's say, the whole complexityof the payment provider nowadays
to become, let's say, globalbecause of the licensing issues,
compliance issues and so on,and to concentrate on the
technical part of work, but alsoto share our expertise.
Since we are servicing paymentproviders, we have a lot of
knowledge to share.
(17:37):
This is one of the goals behindcreating OphotoTech, which is
just to share this expertise tomake the payments and the life
of people who are doing paymentsa bit easier and better.
As I said, having such a bigexpertise, having such a
background for creating a reallygood product, made us the idea
(17:58):
and brought us the idea tocreate a product.
Speaker 2 (18:01):
So what are some things you're passionate about?
Maybe one work-related passionand one personal passion.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
If I had to name something, I would say that I'm
passionate about buildingsustainable businesses, creating
(18:26):
something that not only workstoday but continues to evolve
and provide value in the longrun.
Ability to adapt and then stayrelevant in fast-changing
industry is something I findreally important.
On a personal level, I'msomeone who's motivated by
results by processes as well,but processes are dedicated to
(18:48):
results, it's no doubt for me.
So I find a lot of fulfillmentin setting goals and working
towards them in business, inother aspects of my life if I do
sport or whatever and soreaching certain milestones and
seeing tangible progress issomething that keeps me moving
forward.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
So, andrew, if someone maybe they're just
graduating from university orfrom college and they're looking
for maybe their first job andthey come to you and say, hey,
I'm interested in building mycareer in the payments industry
what advice would you give themto help them be successful?
Speaker 3 (19:23):
I think the most important thing is to choose a
path and stay focused on it.
Stay focused, stay busy, Likeit was recently in a Netflix
film about Arnold SchwarzeneggerIn payments.
You know there are so manydirections you can take
Compliance for prevention,payment technology.
My advice is pick the area thatexcites you, go deep and become
(19:47):
really good in it.
So payment history is broad andit's getting only broader and
constantly evolved, but if youcommit to mastering a specific
area, you'll have a much betterchance to building a successful
career.
Nevertheless, you plan tocreate your own business or you
plan to work as an employee, somy advice would be to
(20:07):
continuously refine your skills.
So stay curious, stay busy andalways look for ways to improve.
So, whether it's payments orany other field, becoming a true
professional in your area willopen you the right opportunity.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Okay, yeah, I think that's great advice.
So, before we close out theshow, is there anything else
you'd like to discuss?
Speaker 3 (20:27):
I don't think that we have time to discuss everything
I want to discuss, but I thinkthat the payment industry is not
, you know, something boringfinancials related thing.
It's really exciting area andit's also the landscape where
everyone, almost everyone, canfind their path, and it's also
the landscape where everyone,almost everyone, can find their
(20:48):
path.
It's just the beginning.
I believe I do not rememberwhere but I read recently that
every big business should become, to some certain level of
extent, to become a financialcompany, a financial startup,
because the payments is justsuch a part of product as
anything else you'll buildbefore.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
Well, andrew, thank you so much for being on the
show today.
I know your time is veryvaluable, so thank you so much
for being here.
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Thank you, Greg, Thank you everyone.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
And to all your listeners out there.
I thank you for your time aswell, and until the next story.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
Thank you for joining us this week on the Leaders in
Payments podcast.
Make sure you visit our websiteat leadersinpaymentscom, where
you can subscribe to the showand where you'll find our show
notes.
If you enjoyed listening,please share on your social
(21:40):
channels as well.
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