Multi-PSP refers to a payment architecture in which a business maintains active connections to more than one payment service provider, using each for the scenarios where it performs best. Instead of relying on a single PSP for all transaction processing, a multi-PSP strategy allows the business to route payments to different providers based on criteria such as geographic region, card type, payment method, currency, transaction value, or real-time performance. The goal is to maximise authorisation rates, reduce processing costs, expand payment method coverage, and eliminate single points of failure.
The case for multi-PSP becomes clear when a business analyses its transaction data at a granular level. Authorisation rates — the percentage of transactions that the issuing bank approves — vary significantly depending on which PSP routes the transaction, which acquiring bank is used, and whether the transaction is domestic or cross-border. A 2-3 percentage point improvement in authorisation rate might sound small, but on a high-volume platform processing millions of transactions, it translates directly into millions in recovered revenue. Similarly, processing costs vary between PSPs based on their acquiring relationships, interchange optimisation capabilities, and fee structures. A multi-PSP approach lets the business route each transaction through the most cost-effective path.
The challenge of multi-PSP is operational complexity. Each PSP has its own API specification, authentication method, webhook format, error taxonomy, and settlement cycle. Maintaining multiple direct integrations means duplicated engineering effort, fragmented reporting, and complex reconciliation. This is why many businesses that adopt a multi-PSP strategy do so through a payment orchestration layer rather than through direct integrations — the orchestration layer manages the connections and normalises the differences.
Shuttle Global’s entire infrastructure is built around the multi-PSP model. With connections to over 40 payment service providers, Shuttle gives platforms immediate access to a diverse network of processors and acquirers through a single integration. The platform does not need to negotiate contracts with each PSP, build separate integrations, or manage multiple settlement streams. Shuttle handles the routing logic, applying rules that the platform can configure — such as routing European card-present transactions through one acquirer and US e-commerce transactions through another. If a PSP declines a transaction or experiences downtime, Shuttle can automatically cascade to an alternative provider. This multi-PSP capability is embedded into every product: Embedded Payments, Voice Checkout, and Payment Links all route through the same orchestration engine, ensuring that every transaction has the best possible chance of being approved regardless of which channel it originates from.