A day in Payments

by Germán Fuentes Capella

Hola! My name is Germán and I am passionate about e-commerce payments. When I say this people assume that I am into the latest acquisition, IPO or funding round news, but that is just not me. My interest lies in understanding how the payment methods operate, from the low level technical details to the actual money flow. I am specially keen about the shopper experience and expectations, as that must align with the essence of the payment flow to maximize conversion rate.

Payments are in the end a reflection of the culture we live in and as such is subject to the sensitivities of our history. From my perspective, the different payment methods are therefore a small window into society, a way to peek into the shopping customs and expectations of shoppers. It’s like having the TV on on a foreign channel, on a language you may not understand but you still get the story through the imagery.

Despite the cultural differences of shoppers around the world, there is a universal truth: nobody wants to worry about the act of paying in itself, the same way nobody questions how they get water in their bathrooms. Therefore disruptions of service have an extremely negative impact on people’s routines and expectations. Strange as it may sound, this is a strong motivator for me: taking care of an essential service, that everybody gives for granted and that enables every single business worldwide.