Elavon, a wholly–owned subsidiary of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) is the first pan–European acquirer to successfully convert its merchant services business onto one international processing platform. Where competitors may operate as many as 26 authorisation and settlement platforms, Elavon´s European conversion of multiple, disparate legacy processing systems into a single, international processing platform lends new meaning to the phrase, "economies of scale."
As a result of rapid expansion via acquisitions, strategic alliances and joint ventures, Elavon - like many of its pan–European competitors - utilised multiple IT processing platforms to support its cross–border and multi–currency international business and its domestic businesses in Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom. By replacing multiple processing platforms obtained through acquisitions with one consolidated international processing platform, Elavon is better able to provide seamless support to global retailers and other customers with multi–jurisdiction businesses.
With the successful systems migration of over 210,000 European merchants, virtually all of Elavon´s international acquiring volume is now processed on a single platform.
"Now Elavon owns the entire payment process, end–to–end. That means our merchants are supported by global presence and capabilities with local market support," said Stuart C. Harvey, Jr. CEO of Elavon. "We are the one source for all merchant needs from processing and settlement to underwriting, risk services, customer support, reporting, voice authorisation, and assistance with chargebacks."
The creation of IPP enables Elavon to more quickly respond to emerging technology initiatives like mobile commerce, industry regulations, like SEPA, security requirements such as PCI–DSS and domestic scheme standards. The efforts associated with system design, development, testing, certification and maintenance are now supported through one development and release cycle, reducing the margin of error and speeding time to market.
"Beyond the bottom–line impact, our international processing platform enables Elavon to provide better service to partners and customers across the globe," said Harvey. "It has already proven to be a differentiating factor in competitive situations, lending us the competitive edge to offer global organisations a single–source provider of payment services, regardless of where they operate their business."
The foundation for Elavon´s continued global expansion, the development of the international processing platform also enables Elavon to capitalize on the growth of electronic transactions in emerging markets, as well as the emerging globalisation of the payments industry overall.
About Elavon: Elavon´s Global Acquiring Solutions organization is a part of U.S. Bancorp. Elavon provides end–to–end payment processing services to more than one million merchants in the United States, Europe, Canada and Puerto Rico. Solutions include credit and debit card processing, electronic check services, gift cards, dynamic currency conversion, multi–currency support, and cross–border acquiring. Elavon´s services are marketed through multiple alliance partner channels including financial institutions, trade associations and ISOs. Elavon has solutions to meet the needs of merchants in specialized markets including small business, retail, hospitality/T&E, health care, education and the public sector. Elavon represents the former brands of NOVA Information Systems and its affiliates FHMS and euroConex. For more information about Elavon visit www.elavon.com.
Elavon Financial Services Limited is regulated by the Financial Regulator.
