Recent musings on payments as it relates to $SHOP + $FB: first some basics, then a few thoughts on recent developments

TLDR: Capturing % of GMV great for SHOP (already well appreciated), but perhaps even better for FB (still early days, unlikely to see impact until Q3 this year)

1) $SHOP launched Shopify Payments in mid 2013 and this substantially changed the trajectory of its business, which previously didn’t scale (directly) with the GMV running through its platform

Shopify Payments today is ~75% of SHOP’s faster growing non-subscription revenue
2) Shopify Payments currently drives ~50% of $SHOP revenue and is enabled by 2/3+ of all SHOP merchants (in 🇺🇸 90%) accounting for nearly 1/2 of GMV generated on SHOP digital store fronts

As we all know, Shopify Payments is powered by Stripe, so not available where Stripe is not
3) Per filings, $SHOP charges ~275 bps gross yield (rack rate is 2.4-2.9% + $0.30 depending on which subscription plan a merchant chooses) and makes ~90-100 bps net yield on Shopify Payments, after interchange and processing fees paid to Stripe and downstream (WFC/FISV)
4) For the < 1/3 of $SHOP merchants and 1/2+ of GMV not on Shopify Payments, the merchant brings its own 3rd party payment processor

In this scenario, SHOP only captures a nominal transaction fee on the non-Shopify Payments GMV (~25bps on blended basis)

H/t @JerryCap
5) $SHOP introduced Shop Pay in mid-2017 as an accelerated checkout option for all merchants using Shopify Payments (no incremental fee)

Shop Pay helps conversion and is ...

🍎-to-🍎: Apple Pay, Google Pay

🍎-to-🍊: PayPal, Amazon Pay (not offered by Stripe, distinct gateways)
6) $FB launched FB Pay in Q4 2019 to enable a unified payment experience across its properties

It works as a wallet and is powered in the backend by PayPal, Stripe and several other payment partners that FB has lined up to enable FB Pay around the world

https://t.co/yA6VMeVlDb
7) While $FB has global ambitions to roll out FB Pay everywhere its users engage with its apps, today it is only really enabled for the Blue App (globally) and Instagram (🇺🇸, most of 🇪🇺 and 🇿🇦 only). For Messenger it’s only available in 🇺🇸 and 🇹🇭, for WhatApp only in 🇧🇷 and 🇮🇳
8) Then in May 2020, to much fanfare $FB announced FB Shops to enable merchants to sell directly on the Blue App and Instagram (today), and facilitate customer support or purchase goods via chat through Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram Direct (future)

https://t.co/2qVxBJ9sgx
9) The same day FB Shops launched, Zuck/Tobi recorded a live chat discussing how $FB + $SHOP are partnering in this effort

But of course SHOP is only one of many e-comm platform partners, including $BIGC, WooCommerce and others to onboard their merchants
https://t.co/bqsg0wJpiS
10) Now the interesting part: How do payments work on FB Shops?

A: Depends on whether a merchant is approved to sell on $FB, and more importantly how the merchant enables checkout (native checkout on FB/Instagram or click to checkout on merchant website)
https://t.co/JYnneiUmyv
11) If native checkout on $FB, payment processing is run through FB Pay and merchant pays FB a selling fee of 5% per shipment (minimum $0.40)

This fee is deducted by FB directly from net proceeds. No fees are collected for payments by $SHOP, even if it’s a SHOP merchant
12) On a relative basis, the 5% $FB seller fee is clearly higher than the ~2.75% gross yield $SHOP charges for Shopify Payments, but it’s in line with pricing for FB Marketplace and a substantial discount to take-rates for $EBAY and $ETSY (both around 10% when including payments)
13) Don’t know for sure but an educated guess would indicate that on a net basis (after interchange and processing fees) for any GMV processed through native checkout on $FB, FB Pay is probably pocketing ~2-3x the 90-100 bps net yield that $SHOP captures from Shopify Payments 🤑
14) Can’t wait for Q3 2021 to come soon enough!

Why?

Because $FB hasn’t implemented this 5% selling fee yet. It’s been waived until July 1, in part due to the ongoing pandemic, but also in order to drive usage

Q3 will be when this revenue will start appearing in FB’s numbers
15) Other pros/cons of $FB native checkout for merchants:

Good: streamlined purchase flow, drive purchase intent through FB/Instagram tags/notifications, retargeting

Bad: No discounts/subscriptions, limited shipping options, various other FB limitations/requirements
16) If the merchant only provides a link to checkout on its $SHOP website (thereby steering consumers off $FB/Instagram for payment), the payment fees are lower and the transaction would be processed with Shopify Payments (or 3rd party processor)

No 5% seller fee paid to FB ...
17) ... but of course $FB will still recapture some of that lucrative selling fee lost by charging the merchant ad fees for driving a click to its website

Mr/Mrs Merchant, pick your poison. Either way, driving more commerce is good for FB 🤑
18) Now this week, $SHOP announces it will integrate Shop Pay into the native $FB checkout experience as an option consumers can choose to accelerate the checkout flow

It’s only available for purchases on SHOP powered digital store fronts on FB/Instagram

https://t.co/vnjNq9NLJw
19) This integration benefits $SHOP and $FB in different ways but is mutually advantageous: higher conversion + faster checkout is good for both (and the merchant)

SHOP likely gets a small cut of FB’s 5% selling fee (similar to if FB user pays using PayPal). Better than nothing!
20) Capturing % of GMV through payments is already part of the $SHOP equity story— not so much for $FB at 25x Fwd P/E (GMV isn’t even disclosed... yet)

Still early days but if native checkout catches 🔥, hard not to see how FB Pay doesn’t scale into something very meaningful 🤗

More from Finance

Here are all the threads posted by @AdityaTodmal and @niki_poojary in January: 🧵

• 8 powerful ways to use Twitter
• Power of Stocks
• 14 Trading Strategies
• Basics of Derivatives (3 parts)
• Technical Analysis for all sectors
• Tweets of the week
• Books on Futures

All the Top 10 tweets threads I have ever posted to date:


Basics of Derivatives Part 1:


8 powerful ways to use Twitter:


Basics of Derivatives Part 2:

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1/“What would need to be true for you to….X”

Why is this the most powerful question you can ask when attempting to reach an agreement with another human being or organization?

A thread, co-written by @deanmbrody:


2/ First, “X” could be lots of things. Examples: What would need to be true for you to

- “Feel it's in our best interest for me to be CMO"
- “Feel that we’re in a good place as a company”
- “Feel that we’re on the same page”
- “Feel that we both got what we wanted from this deal

3/ Normally, we aren’t that direct. Example from startup/VC land:

Founders leave VC meetings thinking that every VC will invest, but they rarely do.

Worse over, the founders don’t know what they need to do in order to be fundable.

4/ So why should you ask the magic Q?

To get clarity.

You want to know where you stand, and what it takes to get what you want in a way that also gets them what they want.

It also holds them (mentally) accountable once the thing they need becomes true.

5/ Staying in the context of soliciting investors, the question is “what would need to be true for you to want to invest (or partner with us on this journey, etc)?”

Multiple responses to this question are likely to deliver a positive result.
#தினம்_ஒரு_திருவாசகம்
தொல்லை இரும்பிறவிச் சூழும் தளை நீக்கி
அல்லல் அறுத்து ஆனந்தம் ஆக்கியதே – எல்லை
மருவா நெறியளிக்கும் வாதவூர் எங்கோன்
திருவாசகம் என்னும் தேன்

பொருள்:
1.எப்போது ஆரம்பித்தது என அறியப்படமுடியாத தொலை காலமாக (தொல்லை)

2. இருந்து வரும் (இரும்)


3.பிறவிப் பயணத்திலே ஆழ்த்துகின்ற (பிறவி சூழும்)

4.அறியாமையாகிய இடரை (தளை)

5.அகற்றி (நீக்கி),

6.அதன் விளைவால் சுகதுக்கமெனும் துயரங்கள் விலக (அல்லல் அறுத்து),

7.முழுநிறைவாய்த் தன்னுளே இறைவனை உணர்த்துவதே (ஆனந்த மாக்கியதே),

8.பிறந்து இறக்கும் காலவெளிகளில் (எல்லை)

9.பிணைக்காமல் (மருவா)

10.காக்கும் மெய்யறிவினைத் தருகின்ற (நெறியளிக்கும்),

11.என் தலைவனான மாணிக்க வாசகரின் (வாதவூரெங்கோன்)

12.திருவாசகம் எனும் தேன் (திருவா சகமென்னுந் தேன்)

முதல்வரி: பிறவி என்பது முன்வினை விதையால் முளைப்பதோர் பெருமரம். அந்த ‘முன்வினை’ எங்கு ஆரம்பித்தது எனச் சொல்ல இயலாது. ஆனால் ‘அறியாமை’ ஒன்றே ஆசைக்கும்,, அச்சத்துக்கும் காரணம் என்பதால், அவையே வினைகளை விளைவிப்பன என்பதால், தொடர்ந்து வரும் பிறவிகளுக்கு, ‘அறியாமையே’ காரணம்

அறியாமைக்கு ஆரம்பம் கிடையாது. நமக்கு ஒரு பொருளைப் பற்றிய அறிவு எப்போதிருந்து இல்லை? அதைச் சொல்ல முடியாது. அதனாலேதான் முதலடியில், ஆரம்பமில்லாத அஞ்ஞானத்தை பிறவிகளுக்குக் காரணமாகச் சொல்லியது. ஆனால் அறியாமை, அறிவின் எழுச்சியால், அப்போதே முடிந்து விடும்.
The chorus of this song uses the shlokas taken from Sundarkand of Ramayana.

It is a series of Sanskrit shlokas recited by Jambavant to Hanuman to remind Him of his true potential.

1. धीवर प्रसार शौर्य भरा: The brave persevering one, your bravery is taking you forward.


2. उतसारा स्थिरा घम्भीरा: The one who is leaping higher and higher, who is firm and stable and seriously determined.

3. ुग्रामा असामा शौर्या भावा: He is strong, and without an equal in the ability/mentality to fight

4. रौद्रमा नवा भीतिर्मा: His anger will cause new fears in his foes.

5.विजिटरीपुरु धीरधारा, कलोथरा शिखरा कठोरा: This is a complex expression seen only in Indic language poetry. The poet is stating that Shivudu is experiencing the intensity of climbing a tough peak, and likening

it to the feeling in a hard battle, when you see your enemy defeated, and blood flowing like a rivulet. This is classical Veera rasa.

6.कुलकु थारथिलीथा गम्भीरा, जाया विराट वीरा: His rough body itself is like a sharp weapon (because he is determined to win). Hail this complete

hero of the world.

7.विलयगागनथाला भिकारा, गरज्जद्धरा गारा: The hero is destructive in the air/sky as well (because he can leap at an enemy from a great height). He can defeat the enemy (simply) with his fearsome roar of war.