Getting Pay by Bank customer support right is crucial in 2026. Yet many providers fail to deliver the required level of service, or simply forget the most crucial point of any customer-facing role: empathy.
Payment method loyalty comes from a friction-free, problem-free payment journey – something both merchants and their customers can wholeheartedly agree on. But being able to put yourself in someone’s shoes when things aren’t quite perfect can really help set things back on track and maintain that hard-won loyalty.
This is something Brite Payments Head of Merchant and Customer Support, Hernán Poveda, knows only too well. As Brite has expanded across Europe, offered new services, and seen the evolution of open banking payments into mainstream Pay by Bank, he brings an expert perspective on maintaining consumer loyalty and merchant success.
Why is consumer trust so important?
Hernán Poveda: When we have the trust of consumers, that can turn a single payment into a lasting relationship. When users like you and I feel safe, merchants grow, and our job in support is to make sure both sides – merchants and consumers – feel safe every step of the way.
What makes Brite unique compared to some other Pay by Bank providers on the market?
Hernán Poveda: What makes us unique is the fact that we have control over the whole payment flow. If you look at our website, you’ll see what’s called the Brite IPN, our Instant Payments Network. It allows us to receive funds and make sure we know exactly where they are. We have full visibility into what’s happening with users’ or merchants’ funds 24/7, 365 days a year. This means faster, more efficient, and concrete support for our consumers. I think that’s a key characteristic of Brite.
Is Brite unusual in that it can provide that level of care?
Hernán Poveda: I think other providers have something similar, but not the same, because they rely more on the third-party account-to-account payment API services provided to the industry. What we have – the control of the flow from one side to the other – is unique to us.
When Brite says “every payment matters,” what does it mean by that?
Hernán Poveda: It means that we give the same amount of importance to a payment of, let’s say, 5 or 10 euros as we do to a payout of €5,000 or €10,000. At the end of the day, it’s someone’s money. In support, if a payment is not processed, we need to take responsibility for resolving that issue or request. It’s as simple as that. It doesn’t matter whether it’s one penny or thousands of euros; we treat it with the same importance all the time.
How does Brite ensure that merchants can provide a first-class Pay by Bank support or payout experience?
Hernán Poveda: This is an easy question. We provide effortless ways for merchants to manage things in our back office. Our network handles routing and instant settlements in the background, so merchants don’t have to worry about downtime or reconciliation. They can just focus on giving their users a great payment experience.
What’s the single biggest security or data privacy misconception about Pay by Bank?
Hernán Poveda: Basically, the fact that a minority of consumers think we store their bank passwords, identity, or personal information is completely untrue. We constantly reassure them that these authentication and authorisation transactions occur securely within their own banking app. It’s a part of the flow where the consumer interacts solely with their bank, using us only to initiate the payment.
That’s the main security misconception consumers have – they think we keep those credentials, which we don’t. It’s likely that as more people use Pay by Bank, they will become aware of how account-to-account payments, or open banking payments, operate.
What is the most important element of payments consumer support that often gets forgotten?
Hernán Poveda: I think this would probably be empathy. You have to take into account that money is a very personal thing. If a consumer reaches out, they do not want technical jargon. They just want you to be fast and human, reassuring them that their money is safe – either that they’re going to receive it or that the merchant is going to receive it – because funds were debited from their account or paid out by the merchant. You have to have empathy with people. You deal with all kinds of people, but at the end of the day, you have to treat everyone with the same level of professionalism.
What common payment errors do consumers actually not encounter when using account-to-account payments?
Hernán Poveda: That’s an easy one. It’s basically everything you experience with credit cards: wrong card numbers typed into the computer, misspelt digits, incorrect security codes like CVVs, expired cards, or cards blocked by the bank for unknown reasons. All of these errors are eliminated with account-to-account payments, such as Brite Instant Payments.
Each market has a distinct banking culture and language. How do you ensure you provide an excellent level of consumer support?
Hernán Poveda: We have a multicultural team. We have team members speaking different languages, including Finnish, Spanish, English, Russian, and German, which cover the primary markets we operate in. We aim to provide support in the consumer’s requested language whenever possible.
How do you see the future of Pay by Bank customer support developing in 2027?
Hernán Poveda: I think it will shift toward predictive resolution. With access to real-time data, we’ll be able to spot bank delays and notify merchants and consumers before they even realise there’s a holdup. That’s where we’re heading, and how I see the future of payment support.
Is there also a human element to consider as expectations rise year after year?
Hernán Poveda: Of course. There’s always talk that AI will replace everyone, but that’s not the case. Support can certainly be improved by building efficient AI tools, but no AI agent can replace the judgment a human brings to a complex resolution. I’ve experienced it myself: I needed a quick, simple answer from a human, but had to navigate two or three AI agents for 15 minutes first – only for a human agent to jump in and solve the issue in two minutes.
And that kind of experience leaves a mark. If consumers have a bad experience with automated loops, they will actively try to avoid them.
Pay by Bank customer support with Brite Payments
Learn more about Brite Payments customer support by visiting our support pages. Or if you are interested in finding out how you and your customers can benefit from Brite Payments and its open banking payment solutions for your market, then get in touch with our sales team now.
