Bank payment company GoCardless and leading international payment service provider and UK & Europe direct bank card acquirer Ecommpay have announced a partnership which will see the latter add direct debit to strengthen its payment offering. 

Thanks to GoCardless Embed, a white-label integration, Ecommpay merchants will soon be able to tap into direct debit capabilities in over 25 countries within a platform they already know and trust. This will help them grow in their existing markets while providing the ability to expand into new verticals and use cases where bank payments are preferred.

With over a decade’s worth of experience in online payments, Ecommpay provides access to more than 100 alternative payment methods and mass payouts, as well as a sophisticated Open Banking payment solution via a unified proprietary platform. This partnership will enable the addition of direct bank payments to Ecommpay's comprehensive suite of payment options.

The news comes as a new GoCardless study indicates that payment service providers (PSPs) must continue to innovate to stay competitive and boost customer retention. Increasing payment choice was cited as a top priority: 31% of merchants surveyed would be willing to pay more for a wider range of payment methods. Over a third of businesses (35%) want their PSP to offer direct debit and more than a quarter (27%) want them to offer Open Banking or other bank payment options. 

Arthur Ribakovs, Director of Financial Partnerships at Ecommpay, said: “At Ecommpay, we are always striving to push the boundaries of fintech and payments innovation. We are therefore very excited to enable card payments, Open Banking and now direct debit transactions all together through our own unified platform, making us even better suited to fit our merchants’ needs and wants.

We are also continuing to form strong partnerships to offer the very best service for our merchants, whether that’s expanding our Open Banking offering or now partnering with GoCardless for direct debit capabilities. Through Embed’s single integration, we can enhance our market-leading payments suite and continue to meet and exceed our customer’s expectations for payment choice internationally.”

Deepak Colluru, Director of Product Management for GoCardless Embed, said: “Gaining access to a wide range of payment methods is now a top priority for businesses, so PSPs need to keep up. By adding direct debit to its platform and diversifying payment choice, Ecommpay is staying ahead of the curve. 

“We’re proud to support Ecommpay through GoCardless Embed, increasing its speed-to-market as it broadens its offering. And we’re even more excited to bring the benefits of bank payments to thousands of businesses, helping them to win and retain customers, save time and money, and get paid on time.”  

Ecommpay’s new direct debit product, enabled via white-label integration of GoCardless Embed, will be available in Q1 2024.