Payoneer reveals triple-digit Asia volume growth...launches API for companies

Payoneer, a provider of payment technologies that lets vendors sell to international customers in local currencies — allowing for easier cross-border payments, based in New York, steered toward a more niche market by targeting small businesses selling globally. That strategy has seen the company register triple-digit growth in payment volume in Asia since 2012, according to data seen by CNBC.

Globally, the company's payment transaction volume in 2016 grew 86.2 percent to $7.82 billion, whereas Asia saw a massive 153 percent increase on-year. "There is a huge opportunity to empower small businesses, wherever they are in the world, to be able to pay and get paid," Patrick de Courcy, head of Asia Pacific at Payoneer, told CNBC.

Payoneer has three segments of focus in Asia — cross-border payments for businesses that sell on global marketplaces like Alibaba and Lazada; vacation rentals on platforms like China's Tujia; and digital freelancers.

The company works by processing customer payments on a marketplace and then doling out the money to sellers. Payoneer has introduced new payment services in Japan and China, where international businesses can sell into these markets and collect funds in local currencies with ease.

Payoneer belongs to a relatively smaller group of companies that focus more on the business-to-business side of the massive payments sector. Direct interactions with consumers are often limited. Its competitors include BlueSnap, PayU and Dutch company Adyen.

Earlier this month, Adyen, which counts the likes of Netflix, Facebook and Uber as clients, announced it processed $90 billion in transactions in 2016.  As Asia's largest e-commerce market, China is a target for most companies doing business in the region. But competition from domestic players is stiff in China. De Courcy says Payoneer's strategy there is to build partnerships with companies throughout the e-commerce ecosystem — including manufacturers, sellers, logistics and providers of other auxiliary services.

The payment brand has also launched a new API that lets billing companies and service providers embed payment technologies in their existing services. Software services companies are now competing globally for customers, and Payoneer allows companies to operate globally and get paid locally, according to the company’s chief executive, Scott Galit.

The move can also be a boon to companies who have large, distributed, workforces, according to the company. The API launch comes on the heels of a YUGE October financing round, which netted the company $180 million in new cash.

Payoneer is backed by investors including Wellington Management, TCV, Susquehanna Growth Equity, the Chinese financial services firm, Ping An, Carmel Ventures and Greylock Partners. To date, the company has raised $270 million for its global payments processing services.

The company supports payments in over 200 countries and territories and can handle over 150 different currencies.