Spend any time with online merchants, and one thing becomes abundantly clear: payments are no longer a background consideration.
They sit at the centre of growth, customer experience, and day-to-day decision-making.
Merchants aren’t looking for what’s next in theory – they’re focused on what works in practice.
That perspective is one DECTA has been actively championing. In a recent Finextra article, DECTA CEO Scott Dawson explores how 2026 will be defined less by new payment innovation and more by who can actually access and apply it.
This shift will be felt most clearly across three areas:
1. Access Over Exclusivity
In 2026, the gap between merchants won’t be defined by ambition or technology – it will be defined by access.
Advanced payment capabilities are no longer differentiators; they are expected as standard by customers. The prediction is not that more tools will exist, but that access to them will increasingly determine competitiveness.
As highlighted in DECTA’s whitepaper, closing the SME payment gap means making enterprise-grade capability genuinely usable, without prohibitive cost or complexity.
2. Onboarding Sets the Tone
Merchant onboarding will play a role in how payment relationships with online retailers are judged.
Fast onboarding can seem like a positive sign. However, not taking time to fully understand a merchant’s needs will separate those payment providers who enable growth from those who slow it down.
Streamlined, transparent onboarding – combining automation with human understanding – will help prevent any issues further down the line at the point merchants need momentum most.
3. Payments as a Revenue Source
In 2026, payments are moving closer to a commercial strategy.
The checkout becomes a place to influence conversion, retention, and customer confidence, supported by better insight and more flexible payment journeys.
Payments begin to actively contribute to performance, not just process transactions in the background.
Across all three areas, the indication is clear. Merchants will judge payment infrastructure by how well it supports growth in reality.
At eCommerce Forum 2026, DECTA is looking beyond trends to help merchants access practical tools and support that allow them to master their payments.
