Payment Rails Shifted Regional Cross-Border Strategy
Operators in gaming and fintech are adopting local licensing and instant payment rails to lower costs.
Updated on Sept. 21, 2026 in Financial Services
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Bryan McMorrine recently evaluated shifting payment trends across Latin America and Canada, identifying a move toward local rails to bypass expensive correspondent banking. This shift follows growth in instant payment systems like Brazil's Pix.
Why it matters
Operators are shifting away from UK-based regulatory models toward local licensing to reduce transaction fees and compliance friction. These localized strategies help firms maintain margins as they target growth in the global gaming market.
The global gaming market is projected to reach $180 billion by 2030. Industry players are increasingly moving to bypass traditional correspondent banking chains between the UK, Latin America, and Canada to mitigate rising transaction costs.
The players
Bryan McMorrine
Financial industry analyst specializing in evaluating cross-border payment infrastructure and regional market trends.
The details
Companies are integrating local payment rails, such as Brazil's Pix system, to handle cross-border deposits and payouts more efficiently. By abandoning reliance on UK FCA regulatory models in favor of local Canadian licenses, providers are lowering their compliance overhead. This tactical change allows firms to reduce reliance on USD-heavy FX corridors in Latin America, which traditionally incur higher fees through multi-stage banking chains.
Timeline
2030: Projected year for the global gaming market to reach $180 billion.
Market Landscape
This shift marks a departure from the previous industry pattern of utilizing the UK FCA regulatory model as a standard framework for international payment operations. Firms are now prioritizing local licensing to circumvent the friction found in legacy correspondent banking chains.
Operators should review their cross-border payment infrastructure and evaluate if local licensing provides a more cost-effective path than maintaining UK-based compliance models. Finance leads must assess whether existing correspondent banking chains are eroding margins compared to emerging, localized instant payment rails.
The takeaway
The move toward local payment rails and licensing is a tactical response to the high costs associated with international banking corridors. Operators should audit their current FX and deposit-processing costs to identify where localized infrastructure can provide a competitive edge.
Further reading
For more on the evolving regulatory landscape, visit our Financial Services section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Tribuna.
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