Sparxpres offers competitive digital financing and credit solutions for private customers, as well as gift card solutions for local councils, shopping malls, and nationwide retail chains. In 2022, Sparxpres facilitated more than 1.4 million transactions for 98 partners at 6,500 retail outlets in 120 different places in Denmark.
Sparxpres’ customers enjoy the flexibility of choosing between having funds transferred directly to their accounts, making payments at retailers, or splitting payments into manageable instalments. However, Sparxpres wanted to go beyond their current offerings to increase retailer turnover and earnings, while simultaneously setting new standards for financing solutions in web shops.
With over 15 years’ experience in developing innovative digital solutions and platforms for the financial sector in Europe, Trifork was chosen as the preferred vendor, and entered a partnership to provide a custom-built card and financing platform for Sparxpres, which is a part of Spar Nord bank – a long standing business partner of Trifork’s. The agreement covers the creation of the platform and five years of continuous development and operational support.
Currently operating on the Dankort infrastructure, Denmark’s national debit card, Sparxpres aimed to enhance their payment ecosystem by transitioning to the Visa infrastructure. This strategic move would not only expand their reach but also unlock a plethora of new possibilities for Sparxpres.
To achieve this goal, they required:
The new Danish-hosted platform, which Trifork is building in close collaboration with Nets, Tuum, and Visa, provides Sparxpres with a future-proof DK and EU-compliant core platform that enables new products to be easily introduced.
Trifork is on a full-cycle delivery journey, supporting Sparxpres from web frontend and backend development to seamless integrations. The first version of the client-facing web portal, designed to empower merchants and retailer chains, and the web shop for consumers to purchase gift cards or vouchers, are currently being developed.
Leveraging an event-driven microservice-based approach, the solution is being built on the Trifork Cloud Stack. By taking a modern modular cloud-based banking platform and enhancing it with a client and country-specific adaptation layer, the project is aimed to be flexible and scalable.
However, running Agile projects in a complex domain like payment platforms presents its own set of challenges. The solution must meet rigorous GDPR compliance and security controls to ensure utmost trust and reliability. Trifork’s role as the prime on the project, serving as both part system integrator and part developer, ensures a holistic approach to project management and development.
Additionally, Trifork set up a hosting environment at Netic using the secure Trifork Cloud Stack. This marked the first time the solution was deployed on a third-party hosted cloud, further highlighting the innovative and forward-thinking nature of the collaboration.
Although the project only started in early 2023, the technical platform for the card solution has already been established. The implementation of a core banking system in less than 6 months has only been possible by using the Tuum Banking as a Service platform and numerous integrations made by Trifork. Adding a user-friendly interface for merchants and retailers and card processing services from Nets makes up the entire solution.
With the new platform, Sparxpres will be able to offer both credit and gift card solutions as well as prepaid payment cards that can be limited to specific purposes. This opens new opportunities and partnerships. In addition, cards will be delivered to a wallet, which is the future of these types of products. The possibilities for future banking are endless and with Trifork’s ambitions to help other banks and financial institutions in the Nordics and Europe, it continues to be an exciting journey as we discover the need for similar types of solutions elsewhere.
” The journey towards the initial release has been exciting so far. Through continuous deliveries and transparent project management, it is a pleasure working with Trifork’s dedicated team – who excel in handling and integrating the many involved parties and understanding the complexity of the Sparxpres business. Even if the full project is at its early stages, the target ambition is within sight. Together with Trifork, Sparxpres will stand on a modern platform, enabling agile and faster integrations and at the end of the day, expanding our business.”
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