Checkout.com, a digital payments provider, announced that the State of Georgia Department of Banking and Finance has accepted its application for a Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank (MALPB) charter.
This reinforces the Fintech firm’s ongoing commitment to deliver a payments platform for US enterprise merchants.
The MALPB charter application, after it gets approved, should give Checkout.com direct access to US card networks, enabling it to serve as its own acquirer.
This move enables Checkout.com to deliver “high performing” payments, improved control, and better experience for merchants.
This is considered to be key moment in the Fintech company’s US growth trajectory.
After entering US merchant acquiring in 2021, Checkout.com’s business has expanding, now claiming to represent 15% of the total international business.
This past year, US volumes surged by more than 80%, considerably outpacing every other region.
Checkout.com is now said to be on track to surpass its target of 30% net revenue growth in its core business. The payments Fintech says it is also expected to process over $300 billion in digital commerce payment volume this year.
This charter marks the formation of an office in Atlanta, Georgia, a hub for US payment and banking operations, complementing Checkout.com’s offices in New York and San Francisco.
The move highlights the ongoing expansion of its North American capabilities, such as the launch in Canada.
Checkout.com is said to be trusted by some of the world’s largest businesses, including enterprise customers eBay, Klarna, GE Healthcare and Pinterest.
This milestone comes after a period of investment driven by an understanding of the US payments sector.
That investment is said to be focused on optimizing payments performance for merchants and the acceptance of the Georgia MALPB charter application is a next step.
It enables Checkout.com to deliver a so-called US-first payments experience to benefit customers and boost growth.
Guillaume Pousaz, CEO and Founder, Checkout.com said:
“Just as our UK acquiring license in 2012 was a catalyst for our business, we see this as the definitive accelerant for our growth in the US. The US is already our fastest growing region, and we firmly expect it to become our single biggest region globally by the end of 2027.”
To spearhead this phase of growth, Checkout.com has appointed Jordan Reynolds as the new MALPB CEO and Head of North America Banking.
Reynolds, with experience from Elavon, SunTrust, and PwC, will run the entity, manage compliance, and lock in access to US card networks.
Jordan Reynolds, MALPB CEO and Head of North America Banking, said:
“This charter is a clear signal that we are here to offer US enterprise merchants a truly different choice. Our focus on building a … digital-first, enterprise payments proposition is designed to win.”
