RBS Set to Compete in the U.S. Market with a Payments Gateway

A new transaction gateway backed by one of the largest processors in the world is gearing up to compete for U.S. e-commerce business. The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, which has been handling overseas transactions for U.S.-based online merchants, has unveiled a new service that will compete for transactions generated within the U.S. as well as those coming from foreign customers. “Now we can handle merchants' transactions through a single gateway,” says Josh Groves, president of the San Francisco-based Retailer Solutions, North America unit of RBS. “We've been selling in the U.S., [saying] let us do your non-U.S. transactions. Now with this combined gateway we can do everything.” The new service combines three platforms RBS operates in Europe and the U.S., including Atlanta-based merchant processor RBS Lynk as well as Bibit Global Payment Services, based in the Netherlands, and Streamline, a U.K. acquirer. Bibit provides back-end settlement and authorization for all card transactions funneled to it via RBS Lynk and Streamline, which can convert 14 currencies. The gateway currently serves 2,000 merchants, about 100 of which are in the U.S., including job site Monster.com. Groves refuses to disclose current or projected transaction volume. Now, says Groves, who officially launched the RBS gateway last week in San Jose, Calif., at Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition, the combined gateway is ready to compete for U.S. transactions. “This is the largest e-commerce market in the world,” he notes. The unit has a U.S. sales force of 20 calling on large and medium-size merchants. A distribution strategy to reach smaller merchants through e-commerce software developers, hosting companies, and larger IT developers is under development. This means competing with established players like CyberSource Corp., Retail Decisions, and eFunds Corp. Groves says his key advantage is the gateway's international scope and experience. “As U.S. merchants mature in the U.S. market, they're looking to branch out overseas,” he says. Backing from RBS, one of the largest banks in the world, helps competitively as well, he adds. Pricing will be key. “In the U.S., pricing is very competitive,” says Groves, who will not give details beyond noting that “we're competitive with [gateways like] CyberSource.”