Organic development and FCA’s License help Lithuanian fintech PAYSTRAX reach €20 million in 2022 revenue and grow in 2023.
The UK operations of PAYSTRAX, a fintech company that offers merchants payment and card transaction acquisition solutions, were started after the company was granted a “Payment Institution License” by the FCA earlier this year.
Having been established in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, PAYSTRAX now adds itself to the growing roster of fintech exporters from that nation. Rather than going the conventional route of series investment and capital injection rounds, the fintech company decided to fund and expand the business organically.
A member of the European Payments Group, PAYSTRAX broke even in six months and has been operating in positive cash flow ever since. In 2022, annual gross revenue exceeded €20 million, and more increase is anticipated in 2023. Additionally, the fintech is licensed as a Principal Member of Mastercard and VISA.
The business, which just opened premises in Brighton, is the most recent in a string of Lithuanian businesses to enter the UK following the success of software firms like Vinted and Nord Security.
“Our aim is simple: to engage with a wide range of UK partners and merchants, providing efficient, high-quality acquiring services, while also harnessing data intelligence to deliver added value to our customers,” stated Johannes Kolbeinsson, CEO and co-founder of Paystrax.
“We focus on creating the best possible solutions from a central base which increases the processing efficiencies of merchants in other countries and therefore our own market competitiveness, rather than just duplicating our operations in different countries.”
From 2002 to 2018, Kolbeinsson served as the CEO and co-founder of KORTA PAY, an Icelandic payment service provider that is now known as RAPYD Europe. For his tenure and accomplishments there, the President of Iceland honored him with a management excellence award.
Getting involved with UK fintech
The fintech industry has found 2023 to be challenging due to unfavorable macroeconomic conditions. This is especially true in the UK, where the fintech sector is quite crowded.
In spite of this, Kolbeinsson says that he thinks this is the ideal moment for the business to join the UK market: “We always intended to join the UK market after we solidified our base throughout Europe. The UK is one of the major fintech hubs in the world.
“We believe we are in a perfect position to provide retailers and merchants with the tools and resources they need to accept new payment methods. Modern problems demand modern solutions, and the UK is among the nations that has embraced the cashless society the fastest.”
Over 500 retailers and merchants in the UK and Europe currently trust PAYSTRAX to help them embrace digital payment methods more quickly and with less hassle.
It clarified that the company’s focus to delivering safe and effective payment services in the UK, regulatory compliance, and client protection is demonstrated by the FCA’s award of the Payment Institution Licence in May 2023.
