What does it take to make a platform like paypal or moneybookers and become a PSP?

Question

I am wondering how I could make something like paypal or moneybookers ( but in small scale) to have a few websites and shops redirect their costumers to complete their purchase by paying there. I think there must be an API available to them through which they can connect to my payment system. I was looking for some available framework and I came across ZendServer which seems to be an ideal environment for developers to make applications in PHP. The thing is that most of these websites are already up and running and I need a solution that requires the least possible alteration in their website as possible, so this is us who have to be able to accommodate a wide range of websites using different CMS like drupal, wordpress, joomla and etc.

I would really appreciate if someone could help me find the best way to achieve this goal, since I have a vague outlook toward how such a thing is done technically.

Thanks alot in advance.

Answer 1

The thing is that these big payment processors have ties with the big companies such as Visa and Mastercard etc. Their systems tie directly into the banks to approve payments. Some direct debit instructions are done by post.

As a result it would be difficult to create such a website on a small scale. This is why you don't see many small payment processors, only the big guys.

More info on wiki about payment processors: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Payment_processor

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

I hope you mean "How do I process payments through an API online that is connectable with multiple CMS systems" and the answer would be to use guys like www.beanstream.com, authorize.net etc. THye have APIs that allow you to use SOAP or cURL to make calls over a secured connection, process (or decline) payments etc. without customers having to leave your site. Paypal also offers an option like that as well, although they are not officially set up as a merchant account service provider, so I prefer to use the "real" guys. I've used Beanstream.com on many of my projects. They are a Canadian company - there are many (more) US providers.

If you're actually looking to start a new business that facilitates the financial transactions, and you're asking this on Stack Overflow to start, you're off to the wrong start - starting such a service provider corporation will require a very large funding base, regulatory issues, connecting with Mastercard etc. and more.

Answer 3

Becoming a payment service provider takes a truckload of money, and an army of financial experts, lawyers, IT specialists, security specialists, tax counselors, and much much more. It's not just a question of programming: dealing with money has huge tax, bookeeping and legal consequences that a single individual is unable to keep up with.

Unless you're a millionaire, my advice is: forget it, and concentrate your energy on something productive instead.