Ep. 115 - America’s Payments Moment: The Exchange, Not The Processor, with Hello Clever

In the latest episode of The Payments Shed Podcast, recorded live from New York City, host Kara Parkey is joined by Justin Grooms, President at Hello Clever, for a conversation exploring why the US could be approaching a major shift in how payments work, and why the future of checkout may be less about processing transactions and more about intelligently matching them to the right payment method, currency and rail. Fresh from his time at Bolt, Justin shares what brought him into the world of real-time payments and why he has joined Hello Clever to lead its US expansion. They explore why the timing matters, with infrastructure such as FedNow and RTP already established, and what still needs to happen for real-time payments and greater payment choice to translate into meaningful adoption at checkout. At the heart of the conversation is Hello Clever's idea of "the exchange, not the processor." Justin challenges the traditional view of payments as plumbing and explains what could change if the point of purchase behaves more like an exchange, dynamically matching transactions with different payment types and rails in real time. They unpack whether the limitations of today's model are driven by technology, incentives or a combination of both. Kara and Justin also get into Clever Connect, how it fits into this exchange model and what happens behind the scenes when payment routing becomes more intelligent. The discussion explores why checkout has arguably remained one of the less dynamic parts of digital commerce, the potential cost of that to merchants, and how data and infrastructure could create a more intelligent point of purchase. Looking ahead to 2031, Justin shares his view on what pay-by-bank at scale could look like in the US, why trust could become an increasingly important competitive differentiator, what greater routing choice could mean for existing payment rails, and where Hello Clever wants to sit as the market evolves. Plus, Justin steps up for The Payments Shed's legendary Shelf of Shame to nominate one payments habit or assumption he'd happily put straight on the shelf. *** The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Cyclops. Cyclops helps payments companies offer crypto acceptance, stablecoin settlement and payouts through one unified infrastructure platform. Find out more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://cyclops.finance/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Salesloft. Salesloft uses agentic AI to turn buyer, conversation, deal and forecast data into clear actions that help revenue teams sell smarter. Find out more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.salesloft.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** The Payments Shed Podcast is sponsored by Mastercard Open Finance. Mastercard Open Finance enables businesses to use consumer-permissioned financial data to create more connected and personalised financial experiences. Find out more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.mastercard.com/global/en/business/open-finance.html⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** The Payments Shed Podcast is partnered with PCN. PCN is a global boutique recruitment agency connecting leading talent and businesses across fintech, cybersecurity, SaaS, e-commerce and Salesforce. Find out more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://teampcn.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** Disclaimer: Views expressed are those of The Payments Shed Podcast hosts and guests, not their respective employers. Nothing discussed constitutes investment, legal, tax or financial advice.