Global Payments research uncovers hidden cost of payment complexity for Australian SMBs
24 SEPTEMBER 2025, BRISBANE – Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN) and its Australian subsidiary Ezidebit today released new market research revealing the biggest payment challenges facing small and medium businesses (SMBs).
The 2025 Ezidebit Australian SMB Payment Pulse, based on in-depth market analysis and a survey of over 300 businesses across multiple industries, uncovered the material costs and scale of fragmented payment systems.
The report quantified six impacts of payment complexity incurred by SMBs:
● 22+ hours per week lost to payment admin - 22.6 hours a week are lost to payment administrative tasks like reconciling across systems, chasing overdue payments and resolving disputes.
● One in six payments arrive late - Late payments persist and 54% of SMBs face regular late or missing payments, impacting cash flow.
● 25% lose customers due to payment option limitations - One in four businesses feel they’re losing customers due to ‘the payment gap’, that is, not being able to cater for their customers’ payment preferences.
● Most have multiple providers and methods - Fragmentation is common, with each SMB averaging 3.5 payment methods across 2.1 providers, rising to 4.4 methods for larger businesses.
● 27% cite security concerns around payment processes - Security is a top pain point, with 17% of SMBs list it as a raised customer pain point that erodes trust.
● Only 20% have consolidated payment providers - With 93% of businesses who use multiple payment providers open to consolidating, the perceived barriers of change hold back most SMBs.
Masseh Haidary, CEO Payments Oceania at Global Payments, said its report uncovers the impacts of payment fragmentation on business growth, cash flow and customer loyalty.
“Australian SMBs are at a tipping point when it comes to payments, and our 2025 Payment Pulse shines a spotlight on the hidden costs they’re incurring when managing multiple systems to balance their books and meet customer expectations,” Masseh said.
“Our research tells us that SMBs who haven’t consolidated their payment platforms with one provider are losing nearly 24 hours a week in administration.
“Cashflow is the lifeblood of SMBs and when you’re busy chasing late or missing payments, you’re not focused on growth. Critically, complexity from multiple systems and providers is also posing security concerns for businesses and their customers, further eroding trust and retention.
“The combination of multiple providers and processes is causing significant lost time, lost revenue and security risks that’s holding business owners back from growing their business and customer base. This data shows these impacts increase with business size and the number of fragmented providers.
“The easiest way to alleviate these business pressures is to shift to a proven all-in-one payments provider like Ezidebit that can accept all payment types - such as online, in-person, direct debit, PayTo, BPAY - in one secure platform.
“The case for SMBs unifying the back end of payments couldn’t be stronger and our 2025 Payment Pulse offers practical steps to navigate the perceived challenges to consolidation.”
To download the 2025 Ezidebit Australian SMB Payment Pulse, CLICK HERE.
About Ezidebit
Ezidebit is a trusted payments provider that’s helped over 60,000 businesses across Australia and New Zealand manage payments. Powered by Global Payments since 2014, its secure Level One Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) compliant platform supports direct debit, BPAY, PayTo, phone, online and in-person payments.
Serving a diverse range of industries including health, fitness, education, childcare and real estate, Ezidebit has delivered over 110 software integrations that enabled merchants to improve cash flow, reduce administration and deliver better customer experiences.
Learn more at ezidebit.com.au.
About Global Payments
Global Payments (NYSE: GPN) helps businesses around the world enable commerce and provide exceptional experiences to their customers. Our payment technology and software solutions enable merchants, issuers and developers to deliver seamless customer experiences, run smarter operations and adapt quickly to change. Because if it has
anything to do with commerce, we are already on it.
With 27,000 team members across 38 countries, we have the scale and expertise to help businesses grow with confidence. Headquartered in Georgia, Global Payments is a Fortune 500® company and a member of the S&P 500.
Learn more at company.globalpayments.com and follow us on X, LinkedIn and Facebook.
