Accepting international payments is essential for any business that serves customers across borders, but it often comes with high fees, unpredictable conversion costs and unnecessary friction. Many merchants end up losing margin not because of pricing, but because their payment processing setup works against them.
The good news is that with the right strategy and the right partners, you can reduce fees, increase conversion, and give your customers a localized payment experience that feels seamless. Below are the core strategies that businesses can use to accept international payments without excessive costs, and how Repayd helps make this possible.
Strategy 1: Lower Cross-Border Fees by Using Local Acquiring
Cross-border card transactions usually incur higher fees because the customer's issuing bank and your acquiring bank are in different regions. This leads to cross-border interchange fees, additional scheme costs, and a greater risk of issuer declines.
Local acquiring solves this problem. By routing payments through an acquirer located in the customer's country or region, the transaction is treated as domestic. This typically lowers interchange, reduces scheme fees, and increases approval rates.
Repayd's acquiring network is built around regional routing. This means card transactions are processed as "in-market" whenever possible, reducing fees while improving authorization rates for customers worldwide.
Strategy 2: Use Local Payment Methods to Reduce Conversion and Processing Costs
Customers prefer to pay with methods they know and trust. Forcing them into card payments can increase costs, create friction and decrease conversion. Offering local payment methods (LPMs) reduces card scheme fees and avoids unnecessary FX costs.
Repayd supports a wide range of local payment methods globally. This gives businesses the ability to offer a localized checkout experience that feels familiar and reduces the costs associated with cross-border card acceptance.
Strategy 3: Optimize Currency Conversion Timing and Rates
Strategic currency management is not about trying to time the market or batching large conversions. In practice, it is about converting at the right moment — and in card payments, the right moment is almost always the transaction itself.
Multi-currency pricing (MCP) allows businesses to price and charge customers in their own currency while receiving settlement in the business's preferred currency. With MCP, conversion happens immediately at checkout. This is typically the most cost-efficient and predictable approach because:
- The FX exposure is transferred to the customer.
- The markup they pay is usually lower than what the card schemes would charge if they performed the FX conversion.
- The business receives settlement in a stable, predictable currency.
- There is no need to hold foreign currency balances or speculate on FX movements.
Some providers promote consolidated conversions or strategic batch timing to obtain better exchange rates. In reality, this approach rarely works in a card-based environment and often adds unnecessary operational complexity and risk. The key is not timing the market, it is having a payments partner that applies consistently low FX markups on every transaction.
Repayd's cross-border payment infrastructure uses multi-currency pricing to convert at the point of payment with competitive, transparent FX markups that beat standard scheme rates. This gives customers a localized, familiar checkout experience while ensuring businesses minimize FX costs and avoid exposure altogether.
Strategy 4: Reduce Chargebacks by Offering Clear Localized Pricing
Unexpected FX costs and unfamiliar currencies are among the top triggers for customer disputes on international transactions. A customer may approve a charge in their currency, but if their statement shows a different amount because the conversion was performed by their bank at a higher rate, they often file a chargeback claiming they were overcharged. Localized pricing avoids this by showing customers the exact amount they will see on their statement. No surprises, no confusion and significantly fewer disputes.
Repayd's payment flows ensure that customers see a clear, consistent price in their own currency with no hidden surprises.
Strategy 5: Improve Authorization Rates With Local BIN Recognition
Issuing banks are more likely to approve transactions when:
- The currency matches the customer's local currency.
- The acquirer is in the same region.
- The customer recognizes the way the payment is presented.
This is why matching currency and acquiring region leads to higher approval rates and fewer unnecessary declines. Repayd uses intelligent routing that identifies the issuing bank's region and processes the transaction through the most appropriate acquiring partner, which improves authorization rates and reduces false declines.
Strategy 6: Reduce Operational Costs Through Automation and Integrated Payments
Even when FX and card fees are minimized, operational inefficiencies can still cost businesses money. Manual reconciliation, mismatched settlements and complex reporting add hidden expenses. The most cost-efficient businesses are those whose payment systems integrate seamlessly with:
- Booking platforms
- Accounting systems
- Financial reporting tools
- CRM and operational software
Repayd's platform is built with integrations and automation in mind. This means cleaner reports, faster reconciliation, and fewer hours spent manually cross-checking payments across currencies and regions.
Strategy 7: Choose a Payment Partner That Understands Cross-Border Complexity
Many traditional payment providers are built around domestic commerce. They are not optimized for:
- Multi-currency pricing
- Local acquiring
- Global payment method routing
- Minimizing FX markups
- Reducing cross-border risk
- Improving global authorization rates
A partner that specializes in cross-border payments will have the infrastructure, acquirer relationships and FX capabilities to reduce costs from every angle. Repayd was built specifically for global payments in travel, hospitality and experience-driven industries. Our infrastructure is designed around the needs of businesses that sell across borders every day.
Final Thoughts
International payments do not have to be expensive, unpredictable, or complicated. By combining local acquiring, multi-currency pricing, localized payment methods, and a partner who prioritizes low FX markups, businesses can significantly reduce costs while improving the customer experience. Repayd provides a cross-border payment solution that removes unnecessary friction and empowers businesses to operate globally without paying the hidden costs typically associated with international transactions. If you'd like to know more about how Repayd can help you accept global payments without the excessive fees, please contact our friendly team today.
