2018 in Review: Reflections from Industry Affairs
By Amy Zirkle, Vice President, Industry Affairs
ETA strives to be the hub for the payments ecosystem and bring together all the diverse players that power modern commerce. Only through industry dialogue and collaboration can we address the most pressing business and technological challenges facing our industry. The ETA committees are a critical platform for advancing these issues, keeping our stakeholders informed and engaged on our top priorities, and bringing together subject matter expects and executive decision makers. Over the last year, ETA’s committees have been a linchpin in the work our association does to advance the payments industry.
International Committee
The International Committee serves as a forum for discussion and thought leadership on payments in global markets including technology matters, market opportunities, and legal/regulatory challenges.
Who serves on this committee: representatives of a) ETA member companies with substantial business outside the U.S. and/or expertise in global payments issues and b) ETA member companies interested in growing their business outside the US; ETA member company employees who focus on global business issues as a substantial part of their company role.
2018 achievements:
- The state of FinTech markets around the world — The committee hosted a webinar in partnership with the International Trade Administration, a bureau of the Department of Commerce. The webinar presented an overview of the markets for FinTech in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, focusing specifically on policymaking around FinTech. ETA members, view the webinar archive here.
- Mobile payments as a tool for financial inclusion — The committee is exploring ways to expand mobile payments usage among consumers in low-income countries and emerging economies. This article was published in the May/June print issue of Transaction Trends. You can read it here.
Mobile Payments Committee
The Mobile Payments Committee promotes the adoption of mobile payments and identifies ways to expand the opportunities afforded by new technology to improve the consumer experience, including the promotion of strategic business partnerships and increasing interoperability among the mobile payments ecosystem players.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that offer or sell a mobile payment product or solution to merchants and/or consumers; ETA member company employees who focus on mobile and/or digital payments, or relationships with mobile payment providers, as a substantial part of their company role.
2018 Achievements
- The Amazon Go Experience – the committee published an Expert Insights article on Transaction Trends on the recently opened Amazon Go store in Seattle. You can read it here.
- Guide to accepting mobile payments — The committee created a two-page guide on the primary benefits of accepting mobile payments and the process for merchants who want to accept them. You can read it here.
- Conversational commerce webinar – the committee hosted a webinar on May 24 on the applications of voice technology for retail. Speakers included Google and Dunkin’. You can view the webinar archive here.
- PIN on Glass webinar — the committee hosted a webinar on November 14 on software-based PIN entry on commercial off-the-shelf devices (like smartphones and tablets) that provided an overview of the relevant PCI standard and the most compelling business applications. Speakers included Square, Ingenico, and Coalfire. You can view the webinar archive here.
Payment Facilitator/ ISV Committee
The Payment Facilitator / ISV Committee works to support and grow the payment facilitator channel by identifying and addressing key issues related to technology, business, policy, and compliance of relevance to this segment. Specific topics of consideration include: industry rule changes, risk and compliance, the use, review and upkeep of ETA’s Payment Facilitator Guidelines, emerging technologies and convergence, and opportunities to expand the Payment Facilitator Market.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that are a) Payment Facilitators, b) merchant acquirers and merchant service providers that work directly with Payment Facilitators, or c) security and/or risk and compliance management companies that work directly with Payment Facilitators. Individual committee members focus on Payment Facilitator issues or work with Payment Facilitators as a substantial part of their company role.
2018 achievements:
- Payment Facilitators Guidelines – second edition published in July 2018.
- Continued work on developing a glossary for the Payment Facilitator space – including a definition of the term, Payment Facilitator, itself.
Payment Sales and Strategy Committee
The Payment Sales & Strategy Committee serves as a forum for discussion of effective business practices, operational issues, and developments in the industry that affect the payments sales channel. The committee identifies emerging strategic technology and business issues and creates resources for ETA members to upgrade their infrastructure, streamline their business operations, and expand the range of payments products they offer to their merchant customers.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that are a) Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs), b) Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), c) merchant acquirers who work directly with ISOs or ISVs, or d) financial institutions that work with or sponsor ISOs or merchant acquirers (i.e. sponsor banks). Individuals who serve on this committee work in business development or the sales channel.
2018 achievements:
- Strategies for Successful Partnerships with ISVs and VARs – the committee developed guidance for acquirers and ISOs seeking to work with Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and Value-Added Resellers (VARs). Read it here.
- Mergers and Acquisitions in the Payments Industry – the committee published the first in a series of articles on M&A in the acquiring space, focusing on the challenges around properly defining the value of a potential acquisition target. Read it here. The second item in this series is a checklist for acquirers to assist with due diligence and notifications before, during, and after an acquisition.
Retail Technology Committee
The Retail Technology Committee promotes the convergence of traditional POS and integrated commerce and identifies the relevant technology and business issues to advance connected commerce. The committee creates materials for ETA members on navigating and leveraging this convergence and considers the long-term outlook of the POS market from the perspective of all relevant industry players.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that a) provide or sell POS software or retail management software to merchants (including Value-Added Resellers and Independent Software Vendors) or b) work with merchants to upgrade or maintain their retail systems.
2018 achievements:
- This year, the committee focused its efforts on developing guidance for Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) on securing their retail systems. The guide is a high-level overview of all the different components of a retail system and is designed to help small merchants become more proactive in securing their data.
Risk, Fraud & Security
The ETA Risk, Fraud & Security Committee serves as a forum of discussion and education around risk monitoring, fraud prevention, and related compliance issues in the payments industry, and recommends best practices and other risk mitigation strategies.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that underwrite merchants or offer risk monitoring, cybersecurity protection, or compliance services to merchants or companies that work with merchants; ETA member employees who are directly involved in a risk management, fraud prevention, or other security role at their companies.
2018 achievements:
- Published the third edition of the ETA Guidelines on Merchant and ISO Underwriting and Risk Monitoring (ETA members log in to view here)
- Produced a webinar explaining the changes to the guidelines and offering additional guidance for ISOs and acquirers seeking to implement them. You can view the webinar archive here.
- Trends in Online Fraud and Cybersecurity – the committee published an Expert Insights article highlighting new developments in online fraud, including synthetic ID and account takeover (ATO) fraud. You can read it here.
- GDPR Frequently Asked Questions for Acquirers – the committee prepared answers to the most commonly asked questions and issues regarding the EU’s General Data Protection Directive.
Technology Committee
The ETA Technology Committee identifies current and emerging payments technologies and develops thought leadership around these issues for dissemination to the ETA membership. The committee creates resources for merchants and the ETA members who serve them to navigate emerging technology trends and anticipate future developments.
Who serves on this committee: representatives from ETA member companies that offer or sell an innovative software product or solution to merchants and/or consumers; ETA member company employees who focus on technology or relationships with technology providers, as a substantial part of their role.
2018 achievements:
- Cryptocurrency / Digital Currency – the committee published three Expert Insights articles on the future of cryptocurrency:
- Distributed Ledger Technology – the committee published an interview with researchers at Cornell Tech’s Initiative for CryptoCurrencies and Contracts (IC3) – read it here. This was an expanded version of the initial interview published here.
- B2B Acquiring – the committee continued its work on B2B payments (first article here) with an article on Purchasing Cards (read it here) and an article on ACH payments.
- Voice Technology – the committee published an article exploring the opportunities for merchant acquirers in voice technology. Read it here.
- Confluence of Issuing and Acquiring – the committee explored the opportunities for ISOs to offer issuing products to their merchant customers.
Want to learn more?
If you would like to learn more about any of these groups, please contact Amy Zirkle at [email protected].
Click here for an overview of ETA Committees and Councils.