Deutsche Bank consolidates its payments business with Fiserv

The German bank Deustche Bank has just announced the signature of its partnership with Fiserv, the American technology company specialising in payment. This partnership will lead to the creation of a new payment company, called Vert, for merchants. The programme will include cash collection and a new stage in the deployment of Deutsche Bank's offerings.

FACTS

• "Vert" presents itself as the only German provider to combine payment acceptance and processing with traditional banking solutions.

• Specifically, the new company Vert will offer merchants:

  • ultra-portable payment acceptance solutions, in m-POS and Soft-POS mode,

  • faster payments (with an account credited the next business day)

  • management applications (an online dashboard providing transaction data and other business reports)

  • a cashiering solution.

• Three first concrete solutions have been unveiled so far by Vert:

  • Clover Flex, an ultra portable all-in-one POS solution starting at €19.99 per month,

  • PAX A50, an enhanced dongle available for €4.99 per month,

  • the Go by Vert application, which allows cash receipts to be made directly on an Android smartphone.

• Vert plans to continually expand its product range, and has already announced the upcoming launch of online payment acceptance and currency conversion solutions.

CHALLENGES

• Offering an alternative format: Far from the classic model of Eftpos terminals and cashier solutions, Deutsche Bank has chosen to work with Fiserv to present a more modern offer based on the optimisation of smartphones in the payment process. This offer comes after the presentation of Apple's Tap To Pay solution and should enable the bank to avoid the disruption of this type of proposal by alternative players.

• Meeting the needs of its own customers: Deutsche Bank points out that with its Postbank and Fyrst brands, its group currently has nearly 800,000 SME customers. It is these businesses that will be targeted by the new service. However, merchants of all sizes, including those who are not customers of the group, are invited to opt for Green's solutions.

• Keeping up with the cashless boom: According to a Deutsche Bank survey in 2017, 74% of respondents preferred to pay with cash. Since then, the proportion has fallen by 14 points to 60% in 2021. And the pandemic will have further accelerated this trend.

MARKET PERSPECTIVE

• Deutsche Bank's history has been marked by multiple partnerships with specialised players. Over the last few years, this strategy of rapprochement has enabled the bank to :

  • position itself as a pioneer in instant payment (from 2019 with Serrala)

  • experiment with a white-label financial services marketplace (with Deposit Soultions),

  • ensure its digital transformation with Google,

  • enter the BNPL market with Credi2.

• Deutsche Bank, which decided last year to reactivate its "Merchant Solutions" unit, is making a strong shift in its payment strategy. A move that seems to affect many other banks in France and abroad: Société Générale with Payxpert, Crédit Agricole and Worldline or BNP Paribas and Kantox.