Not long ago, going cashless felt novel. Today, tapping a card—or clicking “Pay now”—doesn’t register at all. Expectations have changed rapidly, and by 2025, consumers think payments will be automated. Commercial pressure is real: sellers are losing ground $18 billion a year in abandoned carts, and every failed transaction costs approx $12 in direct and indirect losses. Any additional step introduces friction, and any slowdown destroys revenue and trust.
Embedded payments are designed to address both problems. They sit under digital products, remove friction and allow payments to function as a native feature rather than a separate event. When designed well, the customer doesn’t see the transaction at all, but the underlying infrastructure does a lot more work than meets the eye. The new premise is simple: the payment disappears from the product.
Payments without banks—at least from the user’s perspective
Today’s customer does not expect to communicate with the bank. They expect transactions to be completed quickly and accurately. After one button press, however, a series of systems are activated simultaneously. Issuers verify information. Receivers interpret the seller’s request. Fraud engines assess the risk. When lending, foreign exchange or tokenization is involved, additional layers come online.
All of this should happen in milliseconds. If it does, the commercial impact is obvious. Companies using embedded financial reporting two to five times the customer lifetime value and acquisition costs up to 30 percent lower. Simplified payments increase conversions, reduce friction and open new revenue streams. In some models, a well-embedded payments experience can add approx $70 per customer per year.
Reliability is a secondary, less obvious benefit. When the basket is full and the customer is ready to pay, the system should complete the transaction. Failing to checkout does more than just lose a single sale. It damages confidence, often sends customers to a competitor and, in many cases, ends the relationship altogether.
Why every company is becoming a payment company
Embedded payments now live outside the fintech sector itself. Most users don’t even notice the change, but almost every major digital service now relies on them.
Markets once depended on manual reconciliation and delayed payments. Today, embedded financial services manage escrow, merchant payments, instant transfers and platform lending. Tax audits and compliance work automatically in the background. What looks like a simple task is, in reality, a network of integrated financial processes working in parallel.
“Buy now, pay later” is one of the most visible results of this change. A single click can launch an installment plan without redirecting the user or breaking the checkout flow. That simplicity increases accessibility and increases conversion, explaining why adoption is increasing so quickly.
The creative economy has moved quickly. Viewers can instantly tap or subscribe to the broadcaster, with fees charged to the creator’s card shortly. Lower friction directly translates into higher earnings, which helps drive the industry forward for growth. $30 billion in 2024 to about $284 billion in 2034.
Physical conditions, such as sports facilities, are also adaptablerealizing the commercial value. Long lines reduce spending. Cashless platforms reduce wait times and increase transaction volume and drive revenue for individual fans. Payments have become a central part of the fan experience itself.
Even cars are becoming payment terminals. According to Parkopedia, 100 percent American drivers and 93 percent of German drivers say seamless car payments improve their overall experience. Cars are, in fact, evolving into connected payment devices.
Reality check: rapid progress with unequal legislation
Despite these advances, fixed income poses real challenges. Global control remains fragmented. Requirements vary by country, and in the US, state by state. A payment model that is compliant under California’s Financial Instruments Act may continue require a money transfer license Washington state. This flexibility makes it difficult to deliver a consistent experience in terms of quality.
There is also a moral aspect. When credit, subscriptions and financial obligations are deeply embedded within applications, some users may lose visibility into what they have agreed to. Overspending becomes easier, and platform lockouts are more likely. Ease of use has introduced a new class of consumer risk that regulators are still working to address.
Next
Despite these obstacles, the trajectory is clear. By 2026, payment systems will automate transactions, choosing the right methods without human intervention. Tokenized authentication will improve accuracy and reduce fraud. Machine learning will take a large share of real-time decision making.
The boundary between financial and non-financial services will continue to blur. Payments will remain under most digital products by default. Customers won’t think about them, and that invisibility will be a measure of success. Infrastructure fades from view, but its impact on revenue, savings and information becomes powerful.
Alpesh Patel is the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Cortexthe new fintech market. He is a senior executive with over 25 years’ experience in the fintech, cryptocurrency, card issuing, and payments sectors in the UK and globally.
