Shuttle vs Adyen for Platforms

Two Models for Platform Payments

Adyen for Platforms and Shuttle both let platforms embed payments. But they represent fundamentally different architectures:

Adyen for Platforms is an embedded payment solution from Adyen — one of the world's largest PSPs. It lets platforms onboard sub-merchants and process their transactions through Adyen's global acquiring network.

Shuttle is a PSP-neutral payment layer. It lets platforms embed multi-PSP payments through a single integration — supporting 40+ gateways, multiple payment channels, and white-label merchant tooling.

The core difference: Adyen for Platforms makes Adyen your sole processor. Shuttle lets merchants choose their processor — including Adyen.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Where Adyen for Platforms Wins

Be honest about this — credibility matters.

Global acquiring at scale

Adyen has one of the broadest acquiring networks globally. If your platform processes high volume in markets where Adyen has direct acquiring relationships, their rates can be very competitive. For platforms with hundreds of millions in annual processing, Adyen's scale is a genuine advantage.

Unified commerce (online + POS)

If your platform needs to support both online and in-store payments through a single provider, Adyen's unified commerce stack is strong. Shuttle does not handle POS/card-present transactions.

Enterprise payment operations

Adyen's reporting, reconciliation, and financial operations tools are built for enterprise scale. If you need a single-PSP operational dashboard with deep analytics, Adyen delivers.

Brand credibility

Adyen is publicly listed, processes for the world's largest companies, and carries significant brand weight. For some enterprise deals, "we use Adyen" is a selling point in itself.

Where Shuttle Wins

PSP flexibility — the structural difference

This is not a feature comparison. It's an architectural divide.

Adyen for Platforms routes every transaction through Adyen's network. If a merchant needs Worldpay, Stripe, a regional acquirer, or any other PSP — Adyen cannot support it. This is the same single-PSP limitation that applies to Stripe Connect.

Shuttle connects to 40+ PSPs. Merchants choose their gateway — or your platform configures the optimal PSP per region, per merchant, per use case.

Why this matters: Enterprise merchants frequently mandate their PSP. They have existing contracts, negotiated rates, and banking relationships. "Switch everything to Adyen" is not always an option — especially in regulated industries where PSP relationships are tied to compliance requirements.

The further upmarket your platform moves, the more this matters.

Multi-channel coverage

Adyen covers online, in-app, and POS. Shuttle covers:

• Embedded checkout

• PCI-compliant voice payments (IVR, agent-assisted, AI voice agents)

• White-label payment links (SMS, email, chat)

• Chat agent payments

• AI voice agent payments

If your platform serves contact centres, operates AI voice agents, or sends payment requests via messaging channels — Shuttle covers the channels Adyen doesn't.

White-label everything

Adyen's merchant experience is co-branded — merchants interact with the "Adyen Customer Area" or Adyen-hosted onboarding flows. Shuttle's merchant experience is fully white-label — onboarding, portal, payment pages, and emails are all branded as your platform.

For platforms positioning themselves as the payments provider to their merchants, white-label is essential. The merchant should never know there's an infrastructure provider underneath.

Speed and flexibility

Adyen for Platforms typically requires enterprise-level engagement — sales cycle, volume commitments, multi-year contracts, and integration projects measured in months.

Shuttle's integration is a single API that takes weeks. No volume minimums, flexible contracts, and pre-built components that accelerate time to market.

PSP-neutral revenue share

With Adyen for Platforms, your platform's revenue share applies only to Adyen-processed transactions. If a merchant processes outside Adyen (because you couldn't support them), you earn nothing.

With Shuttle, your revenue share applies to all transactions — regardless of which PSP processes them. This means your highest-volume enterprise merchants (who are most likely to mandate their own PSP) still generate platform payment revenue.

The Real-World Scenario

Platform: A B2B SaaS platform selling into enterprise accounts across Europe, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.

With Adyen for Platforms:

• Onboard merchants onto Adyen's network

• Strong coverage in EU and US markets

• Enterprise customer in Saudi Arabia needs a local acquirer — Adyen can't support it

• Enterprise customer in Australia has an existing Worldpay contract — switch to Adyen or lose the deal

• Contact centre customer needs voice payments — not available through Adyen

• Result: some enterprise deals delayed, some lost, voice channel not addressed

With Shuttle:

• Onboard merchants onto the platform's white-label experience

• Configure Adyen for EU merchants, regional acquirers for MENA/APAC, Worldpay for the Australian customer

• Voice payments enabled for contact centre customers through the same integration

• AI voice agent payments added later — same infrastructure

• Result: every merchant supported, every channel covered, revenue share on all transactions

When to Choose Adyen for Platforms

• Your platform processes very high volume and can negotiate competitive Adyen rates

• All your merchants are in markets where Adyen has strong local acquiring

• You need unified online + POS (point-of-sale) payments

• No merchants require PSPs other than Adyen

• You don't need voice, chat, or AI agent payment channels

• You're comfortable with Adyen-branded merchant experiences

When to Choose Shuttle

• Your merchants need or demand PSP choice

• You sell into enterprise where PSP mandates are common

• You operate across geographies where no single PSP has optimal coverage

• You need voice payments, payment links, or AI agent payment channels

• White-label merchant experience matters to your brand

• You want to go live quickly without enterprise contract negotiations

When to Use Both

Adyen can be one of the 40+ PSPs available through Shuttle. Platforms that like Adyen's acquiring in specific markets can configure Adyen as the default PSP for those regions — while using other PSPs elsewhere. This gives you Adyen's acquiring strength where it's best, plus flexibility everywhere else.

FAQ

Is Shuttle trying to replace Adyen?

No. Shuttle is not a PSP — it doesn't process transactions itself. Shuttle connects platforms to PSPs, including Adyen. If Adyen is the right PSP for a merchant, Shuttle routes their transactions through Adyen. The difference is that Shuttle doesn't require ALL merchants to use Adyen.

Can I migrate from Adyen for Platforms to Shuttle?

Yes. The migration is additive — keep existing Adyen merchants on Adyen (via Shuttle), and enable new merchants to choose their PSP. No merchant disruption required.

How does pricing compare?

Adyen for Platforms charges Adyen's processing fees plus account fees. Shuttle charges transaction-based fees across all PSPs. The net cost depends on volume, merchant mix, and PSP rates. For platforms with diverse merchant PSP requirements, Shuttle often reduces total cost because merchants use PSPs with better rates for their geography.

What about Adyen's revenue share model?

Adyen for Platforms lets platforms earn commission on Adyen-processed transactions. Shuttle lets platforms earn revenue share on ALL transactions regardless of PSP. For platforms with enterprise merchants who mandate non-Adyen PSPs, Shuttle's model captures more total payment revenue.

Related Reading

• When Your SaaS Outgrows Stripe Connect — the same single-PSP problem applies to Stripe Connect

• Shuttle vs Stripe Connect — the Stripe comparison

• How Platforms Monetise Payments Without PSP Lock-In — why PSP-neutral architecture captures more payment revenue

• How to Get Payments Off Your Product Roadmap — the hidden cost of maintaining payment infrastructure

• Agentic Payments in 2026: The Infrastructure Guide — AI agent payments: a channel Adyen doesn't cover

• How PSPs Get Distribution Into Enterprise Software — why PSPs (including Adyen) need distribution layers

• Shuttle vs Checkout.com for Platforms — the same comparison for Checkout.com

• Adyen for Platforms Alternatives — the full landscape of alternatives to Adyen

• PSP-Neutral vs Single-PSP — the architectural decision framework

Need PSP flexibility that Adyen can't offer?

See how platforms use Shuttle to support Adyen AND 40+ other PSPs — with voice payments, AI agent channels, and fully white-label merchant experiences.

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