Swiss Payment Ecosystem
The Swiss POS environment is built on a modular architecture where each component has a clearly defined role.
At the center is the payment terminal, which combines hardware and software. The hardware provides the physical interface (screen, keypad, printer, connectivity), while the software layer handles user interaction, transaction logic, and communication with external systems.
On top of this software layer sits a specific EP2 version, which determines how the terminal behaves within the Swiss ecosystem. The EP2 version defines supported transaction types, communication protocols, and integration capabilities. It ensures that terminals can interact with different acquirers and service centers without requiring custom implementations.
A typical setup involves the following components:
- A terminal, operated by the merchant
- A terminal software platform, managing payments and user interaction
- A service center, responsible for configuration, routing, and lifecycle management of the terminal
- An acquirer (such as Nexi), processing transactions and handling settlement
- The card schemes and issuing banks, completing the authorization and fund transfer
This architecture provides a high degree of flexibility. Terminals can be replaced, updated, or reconfigured without requiring fundamental changes to the underlying payment processing flow.
Beyond the core components described above, the EP2 ecosystem also includes additional participants such as integrators, point-of-sale (POS) systems, and cashier software. These elements play an important role in the overall setup, but are typically outside the direct scope of Nexi and are managed by third-party providers.
As of today, our terminals operate in different EP2 versions, however the latest version on most of our terminals is EP2 8.1.
In addition to in-store payments, the same ecosystem extends to other acceptance channels. While the entry point may differ, the underlying roles of acquirer, issuer, and schemes remain consistent.
A useful conceptual model of the global ecosystem, including all participants and their interactions, can be found here: ThePaymentBible - Payment Ecosystem.