What you need to know
- Standard payment providers struggle with the demands of high-touch industries, think: chargebacks, fraud, and seasonal spikes.
- Traditional banks lack the tools for delayed fulfilment, cross-border sales, and rapid scaling.
- Nuvei and Adaptiv offer a better way: real-time fraud protection, multi-currency support, and dedicated MIDs to reduce friction and protect revenue.
Chargeback rates in travel often hit 2–5% — well above the 0.5–1% standard range. In eCommerce, they typically range from 0.6% to 1%, but high-volume and regulated sectors often face more. In 2023 alone, U.S. cardholders disputed $65.2 billion in charges, about 5.7 disputes per person, each worth around $76.
These numbers highlight that the way businesses handle payments directly affects revenue and customer experience.
“Too many businesses treat payments as a back-end function. If you're not optimizing for approval rates and global reach, you're losing revenue and putting account stability at risk. A modern payment stack is a growth tool, not a luxury.”
Moe Tassoudji, VP of North American eCommerce at Nuvei
Without constant optimization, especially around approvals, cross-border flows, and disputes, businesses lose sales and face higher operational risk. Declines, disputes, and system gaps don’t just block transactions; they damage trust and reduce customer lifetime value.
This article explores how legacy payment systems fall short and what businesses in travel and eCommerce can do to fix that.
Why traditional banks fall short for travel and global eCommerce
Most banks and standard payment providers can’t handle the day-to-day challenges of high-touch industries. For example, online travel agencies and global eCommerce platforms can face:
- Delayed service delivery
- Peak-season traffic spikes
- High-ticket purchases
- Cross-border fraud exposure.
All of this stretches the limits of traditional payment systems.
According to Nuvei’s 2025 travel research, over 50% of customers will abandon a booking if their preferred payment method isn’t available. Another 13% would immediately rebook elsewhere. Combined with IATA forecasts, the travel industry stands to lose nearly $30 billion in 2025 due to poor payment experiences.
As a result, high-touch industries need payment systems built for how these industries actually operate.
Whereas most legacy systems fall short on key needs like:
- Virtual terminals for remote or last-minute bookings
- Flexible hold periods for delayed service fulfillment
- Multi-currency support with competitive FX and local settlement
- Underwriting that accounts for seasonality and rapid growth
What makes high-touch industries “difficult” in the eyes of traditional payment providers
For traditional payment providers, industries with unpredictable seasonality and rapid growth create challenges.
These can be any of the following:
Chargebacks
For example, in travel bookings are often made months in advance, leaving more time for cancellations and disputes. In eCommerce, issues like unclear billing, subscription churn, and non-delivery claims drive up dispute rates.
Card-not-present (CNP) transactions
This refers to payments made without using a physical card, like online or mobile purchases. Without physical verification, fraud risk rises. Detection systems must be more advanced to catch threats early.
Cross-border payments
Serving international customers means managing different currencies, local payment preferences, and country-specific regulations. Without the right infrastructure, this adds friction and risk.
Seasonal spikes
Volume fluctuates sharply during peak periods. This can trigger reserve requirements or account caps if not properly anticipated by the provider.
Long fulfillment windows
Especially in travel, the delay between payment and service increases risk. Customers may cancel, or businesses may face financial stress before the service is delivered.
These risks don’t make growth impossible but they do require payment partners with the tools and industry insight to manage them.
For example, 56% of shoppers end up buying something they hadn’t planned. That highlights the importance of a smooth, trustworthy payment experience, especially when the business model relies on conversion and impulse purchases.
“Travel and eCommerce businesses run on global timelines and face unique risks. The right payment partner understands those pressures and is built to handle them.”
Steve Marshall, CEO of Adaptiv
How to choose the right payments provider for travel and eCommerce
High-touch industries need payment infrastructure that handles complexity, understands their unique industry traits, and can adapt as the business grows.
This means more than generic tools but purpose-built capabilities, including:
- Multi-currency support with local acquiring. To reduce cross-border declines, cuts FX costs, and improves the global customer experience.
- Flexible underwriting. To support advance bookings, high-volume spikes, and seasonal changes without disruptions.
- Dedicated MIDs (not sub-accounts). To ensure greater control, account stability, and tailored performance management.
- Integrated chargeback tools (RDR, Verifi, Ethoca). To prevent disputes before they escalate and protects revenue.
- Real-time fraud detection. Designed for card-not-present and international transaction patterns.
- Specialized support. Fast, informed responses from teams that understand your industry’s specific risks.
Nuvei + Adaptiv: built for the demands of high-touch industries
Nuvei’s partnership with Adaptiv Payments addresses the specific challenges faced by industries like travel and eCommerce - industries where high volume, cross-border complexity, and elevated risk are everyday realities.
Adaptiv brings deep operational knowledge in these verticals, while Nuvei delivers the enterprise-grade infrastructure required to scale.
Together, we help businesses:
- Lift approval rates through smart routing, localized acquiring, and adaptive risk tools
- Prevent disputes and chargebacks with integrated Verifi, Ethoca, and RDR solutions
- Scale globally with multi-currency support and flexible settlement options
- Maintain account stability with direct MID setup (not sub-account models that risk unexpected freezes)
- Stay informed and supported with real-time insights and dedicated account managers who know your sector
“Too often, payment providers choose simplicity over performance. Travel and eCommerce businesses don’t need generic, they need precision. Our partnership with Adaptiv helps them maximize every transaction, every market, every touchpoint.”
Moe Tassoudji, VP of North American eCommerce at Nuvei
“High-risk shouldn’t mean high-friction. With Nuvei, we’re building smarter pathways to scale through faster approvals, fewer declines, and real support built around how these businesses actually operate.”
Steve Marshall, CEO of Adaptiv
Learn more about Adaptiv Payments here.
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