In a further move to fulfill international demand for its products and services, South African payment solutions provider Stanchion Payment Solutions has opened a European regional office based in London.
The company's entry into the European financial services technology sector follows a year after the opening of a Middle East and North Africa regional office, based out of Dubai, in March 2013.
Stanchion is a specialist company trusted to implement, manage and enhance payment systems and solutions in complex environments for banks, retailers, payment processors and payment system vendors.
Stanchion CEO Graham Williams says the latest development is a milestone in exporting proven South African payments technology and services globally. "This new office heralds Stanchion's arrival in Europe, where research has shown there to be many viable markets and demand for our payments software, services, and solutions. Our operations now span the full extent of Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)."
Heading the European office is Charlie McIver, who brings 15 years of payments industry experience to Stanchion, including a decade at S1 Corporation (since acquired by ACI) where he served as Vice President for Operations, initially for Europe and the Middle East, and subsequently for North America.
"These are exciting times for Stanchion, which offers a proven track record for trustworthy payment products, solutions and professional services, at a highly competitive cost thanks to the capability of the development team located in South Africa," McIver says. "I'm very excited to join a great team and excited by the opportunity and challenge for Stanchion in Europe," he adds.
McIver notes an abundance of opportunity not only in the UK, but right across Europe: "European bank processors and retailers are currently experiencing a period of significant disruption thanks to the introduction of new technology platforms, a high level of M&A activity and continued regulation. We are also seeing increased cross-border and systems consolidation programs which drive interesting technology project opportunities for us."
The UK is a strong market for payments technology providers, but McIver also cites major opportunities in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Poland, all of which can be effectively served from Stanchion's new London based office. "Our approach is to form long term strategic partnerships with our payments processing customers. We look to help them improve efficiency in current operations, to develop innovative strategies, introduce new ideas and technologies, as well providing them with highly capable outsourced skills to deliver these initiatives. Stanchion's balance of local and South African based expertise is a proven and cost-effective model, and with a track record of over a decade, Stanchion clients know they are in good hands. I think customers will welcome our refreshing approach!"
McIver also hints at future expansion in North America: "The London office also allows Stanchion to position itself deftly in response to increasing demand we are seeing from US & Canadian customers. We'll be watching this market to see when a US presence makes sense."