The state of payment maturity 2024: global statistics and trends

Based on insights from 793 global merchants, our payment maturity research reveals exclusive findings on how businesses around the world are evolving their online payment strategies to drive growth.

Research methodology

Our research was based on interactive quizzes designed to evaluate businesses’ payment maturity. These quizzes combined quantitative and qualitative questions, covering key areas such as:

• Payment setup and infrastructure (e.g., use of hosted payment pages, custom gateways, or manual payment processes).
• Payment functionality (e.g., transaction routing, automation, fraud prevention, and analytics capabilities).
• Payment provider connectivity (e.g., number of providers, redundancy, and global coverage).
• Payment management and organisational structure (e.g., presence of dedicated payment managers or teams).
• Speed of integration (e.g., time required to add new payment methods).
• Business size and transaction volume (e.g., number of monthly transactions processed).
• Industry-specific considerations (e.g., unique payment challenges in regulated industries such as gambling).

The gambling industry, due to its unique regulatory and risk management requirements, was analysed separately, allowing us to highlight industry-specific trends and challenges.

The data is based on self-reported responses, meaning there is potential for interpretation differences in the information provided. Results should be viewed as indicative of broader trends rather than precise measurements.

What is payment maturity?

The payment maturity model outlines five distinct stages of payment evolution:

1. Manual payments – transactions are processed manually, suitable for small businesses with low volumes.
2. Fragmented payments – multiple payment systems are in use, but they operate independently, creating inefficiencies and data silos.
3. Unified payments – payment processes are consolidated into a single, streamlined system, improving efficiency and data visibility.
4. Responsive payments – payment systems become adaptable, enabling businesses to respond quickly to market changes and new payment technologies.
5. Agile payments – the highest level, where businesses proactively innovate and optimise payment strategies to drive growth and competitive advantage.

Payment maturity segmentation: where businesses stand today

Businesses fall into distinct payment maturity segments, each reflecting their ability to manage payments efficiently, leverage technology, and scale seamlessly. Our analysis of payment maturity levels shows that while some businesses are progressing towards automation and optimisation, the majority are still struggling with fragmented payment processes.

The majority of businesses are stuck in fragmented payments

With 59.1% of businesses in the Fragmented payments stage, it’s clear that a significant portion of the market struggles with disconnected payment systems. This fragmentation creates operational inefficiencies, increases security risks, and hinders the ability to leverage data-driven insights. Companies in this stage are likely dealing with multiple payment vendors, disjointed reporting structures, and manual reconciliation efforts.

The strategic shift to unified systems

Only one in four businesses (25.1%) have successfully consolidated their payment systems into a unified framework. These businesses experience greater operational efficiency, better financial oversight, and improved compliance management.

Only 12.3% of businesses are truly adaptive

Combining Responsive (9.1%) and Agile (3.2%) businesses, we find that just over 12.3 % of organisations have reached an advanced level of payment maturity. These companies leverage AI-driven fraud detection, real-time transaction monitoring, and adaptive payment routing to stay ahead of market trends.

Manual payment processing is becoming obsolete

With only 3.5% of businesses still relying on Manual payments, it’s evident that the industry is moving toward automation and digital transformation. However, businesses in this category face significant operational bottlenecks, security vulnerabilities, and scalability challenges.

Online payment trends 2024

The way businesses handle online payments is changing fast. By analysing key trends shaping the online payment landscape, businesses can progress in payment maturity, gradually moving from basic setups to more sophisticated, scalable, and automated payment solutions.

Target markets

The geographical reach of businesses in terms of target markets is:

• Most businesses (34.6%) focus on a single country, reflecting a high number of local merchants.
• 28.1% operate on a global scale, indicating that a significant portion of businesses are equipped for international commerce.
• Expansion across multiple regions remains limited (11.4%), suggesting barriers to international scalability.

Distribution of monthly online transaction volume

The online transaction volume breakdown is as follows:

• The majority (60.1%) of businesses handle fewer than 5,000 transactions per month, indicating a prevalence of small to mid-sized merchants in the market.
• Only 21.3% of businesses process more than 100,000 transactions monthly, suggesting that large-scale merchants make up a smaller portion of the market.
• There is a sharp decline in the number of businesses reaching the 100,000+ transactions category, underscoring the significant challenges companies face in scaling their payment operations beyond a certain threshold.

Number of payment providers used

The distribution of companies based on the number of payment providers they use reveals critical insights:

• A majority (41.3%) rely on a single payment provider. This correlates with the fact that the majority of businesses process up to 500 transactions monthly.
• 34.1% use 2-4 providers, suggesting a need for redundancy or broader payment method coverage.
• 24.6% of businesses operate with high transaction volumes and complex business models, often driven by regional expansion, necessitating the use of 5-9 or even 10+ payment providers to support their diverse payment needs and ensure seamless transaction processing.

Types of payment setups businesses employ

The way businesses structure their payment setups directly impacts transaction success rates, operational efficiency, and scalability. Our analysis identifies five primary payment setup types, each reflecting a different level of technological sophistication and control.

• Over half (52%) use a provider-hosted payment page, either basic or branded, indicating a preference for simple, third-party solutions.
• 24.8% still rely on manual payment links, which may suggest inefficiencies in payment processing for these businesses.
• Only 23.2% (self-made gateways and self-hosted payment pages) handle card payments in-house, showing that most businesses prefer outsourced solutions.

Payment functionality used

Payment functionality is a crucial indicator of payment maturity, revealing whether businesses rely on basic transaction processing or have adopted sophisticated payment strategies to enhance efficiency, security, and customer experience. The following distribution illustrates how businesses use various payment features:

• 46.7% of respondents rely solely on basic payment acceptance without any additional capabilities.
• Complex payment operations, including refunds, chargeback management, and analytics, are utilised by 21.9% of businesses.
• Advanced features like fraud prevention and subscription billing are adopted by 17.6% of businesses.
• Payment hubs with routing and cascading (8.4%) and AI/ML-powered intelligent payments (5.2%) remain niche but are expected to see increased adoption as businesses seek greater automation and efficiency.

Online payment management peculiarities

Managing payment operations efficiently is a critical factor in payment maturity. Our analysis of payment management structures reveals the following distribution of responsibilities:

• More than one-third of businesses (36.9%) manage payments as part of general administrative tasks. Small companies often lack the resources to assign a dedicated person for payment processing or consider it impractical at lower transaction volumes. In such businesses, payment responsibilities are frequently handled by senior executives or founders, who oversee financial operations alongside other duties.
• A significant portion (28.0%) of companies delegate payments to a specific team member, though it's not their primary responsibility, which may introduce inefficiencies and knowledge gaps.
• Companies processing large volumes of payments (100k+ transactions) recognise the importance of payment expertise and invest in dedicated management structures.
• Larger businesses (500k+ transactions per month) show a strong preference for a specialised payment department, reflecting the necessity of expert management in complex payment environments.
• As businesses scale and integrate multiple payment providers, the demand for skilled payment managers is increasing, making this a valuable and growing career field.

The online business environment is largely dominated by small to mid-sized merchants who operate within a single country and handle relatively low transaction volumes. The majority rely on one or a few payment providers, and many still use only basic payment acceptance functionality. Payment management is often handled as an administrative task rather than a dedicated role, and many businesses rely on provider-hosted pages rather than custom-built payment solutions.

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How payment setup sophistication correlates with transaction volume

To understand the relationship between payment setup sophistication and transaction volume, we analysed businesses across different tiers. Here’s what we discovered:

• Low-volume businesses (≤ 500 transactions/month) tend to favour manual payment links or basic provider-hosted payment pages, as these require minimal technical effort and investment.
• As transaction volume increases, businesses transition towards branded provider-hosted pages or self-hosted custom payment pages, reflecting a greater emphasis on branding, user experience, and data control.
• Companies processing 100k+ transactions per month show a clear preference for self-hosted custom pages or even operating their own payment gateway, highlighting a strategic move towards greater control, transaction optimisation, and cost efficiency.
• Fully self-made payment gateways are predominantly used by enterprises processing over 500k transactions per month, demonstrating the necessity of highly customised and scalable payment infrastructure in high-volume environments.
• The widespread adoption of branded provider-hosted payment pages suggests that businesses prioritise customisation while avoiding the complexity and cost of developing and maintaining their own payment infrastructure, striking a balance between convenience and brand identity.

Payment functionality vs. number of payment providers

We also examined how the number of payment providers a business works with influences its payment functionality choices.

• Companies with 1-4 payment providers are more likely to use basic payment acceptance.
• As the number of providers increases (especially 5+), the proportion of businesses using complex payment operations and advanced features (fraud prevention, subscriptions, AI/ML automation, etc.) also increases.
• Businesses connected with 10+ providers tend to have more diverse and advanced payment functionalities.

The trend is clear – as businesses grow and deal with more transactions across multiple payment providers, they need more advanced tools and strategies to keep their payment processes running smoothly.

Payment provider connectivity vs. transaction volume

Our analysis highlights a strong correlation between transaction volume and the number of payment providers a business uses:

This further confirms the trend: as transaction volume increases, businesses tend to add more payment providers.

Payment provider connectivity vs. target markets

Expanding into new markets often necessitates adding more payment providers due to differences in regional preferences and regulations.

• The majority (45%) of companies operating globally consider it necessary to work with 10+ payment providers, suggesting that broad coverage and redundancy are crucial at this scale.
• 5-9 providers are the least common choice across all types of target markets, indicating that businesses either stick to fewer providers for simplicity or go all in on diversification with 10+ providers.

How quickly do businesses integrate new payment providers or methods

The speed at which a business integrates a new payment provider or method is a key indicator of its payment maturity, directly affecting its ability to expand into new markets, manage costs, and enhance the customer experience.

• 44.5% of businesses believe they can integrate a new provider or method almost instantly or within a few days.
• 16.7% see it as a significant project each time, meaning they likely face operational or technical barriers.
• 12.9% take months, which could indicate legacy systems, compliance constraints, or low prioritisation.

Global vs. local: who integrates faster

The speed at which businesses integrate payment solutions varies significantly based on their target market.

Global businesses lead the way in integrating payment solutions, with 30.7% able to do so almost instantly or within a few days, while only 18.5% take months, making them the most efficient in this area. In contrast, businesses operating in a single country often face slower integrations – 46.2% see it as a major undertaking, and 38.3% take several months to complete.

The state of payment maturity in gambling

A dedicated study on gambling businesses offers a data-driven snapshot of the industry's landscape in 2024. We delve into key pain points, emerging trends, and the strategic approaches high-risk operators are using to enhance their payment maturity.

Gambling transaction volume insights

How many payment providers are gambling businesses connected with

The number of payment providers is a critical factor for gambling businesses, influencing transaction reliability, user experience, and risk management. Here’s a breakdown of how operators approach their payment provider strategies:

• 20.25% of gambling operators rely on a single payment provider, which may pose risks in case of service disruptions.
• 32.52% of respondents prefer using 2-4 providers, making this the most common category. This suggests a strategy of balancing redundancy and cost efficiency.
• 17.18% of respondents work with 10 or more providers. These businesses typically operate at scale, leveraging multiple providers for global reach, compliance with regional regulations, and higher transaction success rates.

Integration challenges: gambling vs. other industries

Gambling operators often face longer integration times than other industries. 28.2% of gambling businesses take over a month to integrate a new payment provider, compared to only 12.9% of businesses in other industries.

This delay is likely due to stricter compliance requirements and complex risk assessments imposed by regulators and financial institutions.

Payment disruptions and declines: a major pain point in gambling

Payment reliability is a persistent challenge for gambling businesses, with operators experiencing disruptions:

• Occasionally – 36.20%
• Frequently – 32.52%
• Rarely or never – 31.28%

This means that nearly one-third of gambling businesses face frequent payment downtime, which directly impacts revenue, player experience, and retention. These disruptions can lead to significant losses in an industry where seamless transactions are critical.

Beyond disruptions, high transaction decline rates are a widespread issue:

• 36.27% of gambling businesses report failure rates above 8%, resulting in lost revenue and player dissatisfaction.
• Only one-third experience low decline rates (under 3%), highlighting a significant opportunity for payment optimisation and infrastructure upgrades.

How the number of payment providers impacts payment success rates

The number of payment providers a business works with directly influences transaction success rates:

• Businesses that rely on a single payment provider face the highest percentage of payment disruptions (42.4%) and elevated transaction failure rates, with 30.3% reporting "Above 8%" decline rates. This is primarily due to the lack of payment routing and fallback mechanisms, leaving transactions vulnerable to provider outages, technical failures, or regional restrictions.
• Businesses using 2-4 providers achieve greater stability, with 22.6% experiencing moderate (4-7%) decline rates, while 24.5% report minimal declines (less than 3%).
• Companies with more than 5 providers still experience some disruptions, but less frequently.

These findings confirm that diversifying payment providers helps reduce transaction failures and ensures greater payment stability.

Why payment routing is critical to gambling payments success

A well-structured payment routing strategy is crucial in reducing disruptions and increasing transaction success rates. Yet, many gambling businesses are lagging in payment routing maturity:

Our analysis reveals a clear correlation between routing setup and transaction performance:

• Businesses without a payment routing strategy face significant risks, with 20% experiencing "Above 8%" transaction failure rates and 42% reporting frequent payment gateway disruptions.
• Basic rule-based routing also struggles, with 35% of businesses experiencing payment disruptions due to its lack of dynamic fallback mechanisms. Additionally, it records the highest transaction failure rate (25% reporting "Above 8%" declines), underscoring its limitations in optimizing payment success rates.
• In contrast, moderately adaptive routing factoring in variables like transaction amount and type delivers the best results. Businesses using this approach report the highest proportion of successful transactions, with more respondents achieving "Less than 3%" decline rates.

In an industry where every failed transaction represents a lost player, upgrading to an adaptive or AI-driven payment routing strategy is a must. Without it, operators face higher decline rates, frustrated customers, and shrinking profits.

Key takeaways

• 59.1% of businesses are stuck in Fragmented payments, dealing with inefficiencies and disconnected systems. Streamlining payment infrastructure is crucial for operational efficiency and growth.
• 41.3% use only one payment provider, prioritising simplicity, but 24.6% use 5+ providers for international reach and redundancy.
• Global businesses integrate payment providers faster, with 30.7% able to do so within days, compared to local businesses, where 46.2% find integration a major project.
• 36.9% manage payments as part of general admin tasks, often handled by executives and founders. Only large businesses (500k+ transactions/month) have dedicated payment teams, highlighting the importance of expertise at scale.
• 52% of businesses rely on provider-hosted payment pages, while only 23.2% use self-hosted gateways.
• Gambling businesses face unique challenges, including slower payment integrations and higher transaction failure rates, requiring them to prioritise a robust and adaptive payment setup to ensure reliability and compliance.

Find out where you stand & get exclusive 2025 insights

Want to know where your payment setup stands? Take our quick quizzes to assess your payment maturity and uncover ways to optimise your strategy:

• General payment maturity quiz ➡️ Take the quiz
• Gambling business payment setup quiz ➡️ Take the quiz

By taking the quizzes, you'll be among the first to receive the 2025 Payment maturity report – packed with fresh data and emerging trends.