Fiserv Finalizes Payfare Purchase to Boost Embedded Finance Offerings

Payments and financial services tech firm Fiserv finalized its purchase of Payfare.

The completed deal makes the founders and employees of earned wage access (EWA) provider Payfare part of the Fiserv team, according to a Monday (March 3) press release.

“This acquisition complements Fiserv’s existing embedded financial solutions with card program management and a white-label consumer application,” the release said. “Payfare’s offerings, combined with Fiserv’s strengths in processing, bank ledgers and integrated value-added services, provide a complete solution for embedded banking, payments and lending.”

The deal, announced late last year, gives Payfare “enhanced scale and technology which better positions us to serve a growing number of large organizations and deliver a modern digital experience,” Payfare CEO and founding partner Marco Margiotta said in a Dec. 23 press release.

“Payfare has built a reputation as an innovator in workforce payments for gig economy companies,” Fiserv Chairman, President and CEO Frank Bisignano said in the Dec. 23 release. “Together, we can accelerate the delivery of embedded finance solutions for all of our clients, empowering their next chapter of success.”

Following the announcement of the deal, PYMNTS examined the need for on-demand pay, pointing to research showing the option is especially appealing as roughly two-thirds of consumers live paycheck to paycheck.

The PYMNTS Intelligence report “No-Wait Wages: Leveraging Instant Payments to Boost Employee Satisfaction” found that 83% of people wanted to have more frequent pay schedules, stretching beyond the confines of the traditional biweekly pay schedules, and 75% of gig economy workers wanted to be paid more frequently.

The report also found that three-quarters of millennials said earned wage access availability would help determine whether they accepted a job offer. In addition, 96% of corporations that offered EWA said their employees liked it and it helped attract talent.

Meanwhile, the PYMNTS Intelligence report “Measuring Consumer Satisfaction With Instant Payouts” found that 77% of consumers opt to receive instant payments for income and earnings disbursements.

Fiserv’s Bisignano, meanwhile, was tapped late last year to oversee the Social Security Administration, the country’s largest federal program.

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