FX and payments fintech Neo conducted a survey of 100 payment research providers (PSPs) in Europe and found that they did not reveal the actual situation for banks. 29% of PSPs are reluctant to trade with cryptocurrency exchanges due to bank partner restrictions. However, given the increasing use of stablecoins for cross-border payments, this could limit the opportunities for PSPs to participate in this growing area and potentially impact their ability to innovate. There is a possibility.”
Research shows that PSPs are wary of putting their banking partners in a bad position. 95% of banks have closed or restricted accounts. One of the biggest complaints is the lack of transparency. 71% said their account was closed or restricted without knowing why. 42% experienced closures or restrictions for which their bank disclosed reasons. This happens frequently across multiple banks, so the numbers add up to more than 100%.
Therefore, the majority of PSPs have multiple banking relationships, averaging just under three. The majority, 55%, own two or three banks, and 30% own four or five banks.
If you lose your banking partner, finding a new one can take a significant amount of time. Only 2% of PSPs were able to open an account within six months. Most accounts take between 7 and 18 months to open, with the average being 11.5 months. The UK appeared to have the longest time span, including both the shortest and longest time spans.
The biggest headaches for the banking industry are:
Lengthy onboarding process Incompatibility with crypto exchanges, stablecoins Risk of account closure Legacy technology Insufficient support when payments are blocked Unclear statement of risk appetite Limited access to USD payments has been done.
It should be noted that this study was conducted by Neo, which targets PSPs as clients. We provide FX and cross-border payment solutions.
