Q&A with Matt Davies, Executive Director, Gift Card Network

2014 All Payments Expo speaker Matt Davies, Executive Director, Gift Card Network sits down with APEX for a brief Q&A about the future of the payments industry. To hear more about the landscape of the payments industry from Matt, make sure you register for APEX today! And remember, blog readers receive a 10% discount - register here.


1) What is the most overheated opportunity for payments players? What is the most overlooked that should get more attention?

Mobile Wallets and its many iterations has dominated the discussion without bothering to define it. There are so many different concepts and approaches that the market is confused and will stay stagnant until a major player comes in and pushes the market in a specific direction with a goal that the public and merchant population has bought into and finds value in.

Education about the payments space is the most important thing for us to focus on. Startups needing merchant support must look at the things that merchants care about, and go about building their own brand and market share prior to asking for support, and educate and market themselves to their potential clients in a comfortable way.

2) What is one thing blocking innovation for payments in the U.S.?

The cultural difference between entrepreneurs, who are have incentive to break the rules, and the decision makers, who have incentive to create new rules or play by them. There is a vast difference between what CAN be done and what SHOULD be done for each particular merchant- we need to break down the psychological barriers and engage in neutral problem-solving conversations.

3) In ten years, what will be the new payment type that’s gotten the most traction?

Flat transaction rate credit and debit card providers. It's an ideal state for retailers to get away from the percentage based model, and it allows consumers to utilize credit.
 
That, or monkey-bucks.

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