Finovate Blog

With all of the talk about the benefits of enabling technology such as AI and machine learning, it’s not a surprise to see global payments platform Flywire getting in on the action. The Massachusetts-based company recently announced that it is leveraging machine learning to improve its payments and receivables solution.

Flywire’s recent machine learning updates allow the company to improve payment-to-settlement time, increase security, and automate payment reconciliation. The updates replace a legacy, rules-based system that was used to perform invoice reconciliation. Using machine learning reduces manual effort, supports changing business requirements, and minimizes human error.

Additionally, the machine learning algorithms can easily learn and support new payment methods, confirm payment sources, and optimize foreign exchange conversion. They also help reduce fraud by detecting anomalous payments and flagging them for Flywire’s compliance team.

“Accepting payments across borders is a highly complex process that increases the cost of collecting monies, opens up FX and fraud risks, and requires enormous operational investment,” said Jason Moens, VP of Product at Flywire. “As more and more businesses and institutions leverage our platform to address these challenges, we continue to look for new ways to enhance its capabilities. The addition of advanced machine learning further streamlines our clients’ payment and receivable operations and removes more of the potential risks that can negatively impact fundamental parts of their business.”

Flywire originally launched as peerTransfer in 2011, when the company debuted its college tuition payment platform at FinovateSpring 2011. While this flagship market makes up 80% of Flywire’s revenue, the company has since rebranded and expanded to tackle international payments for healthcare, travel, and businesses. Flywire’s platform processes billions of dollars in payments every year in over 120 different local currencies, connecting more than 1,400 businesses and universities with their customers.

Last summer, Flywire raised $100 million to promote global expansion and fuel its bourgeoning healthcare and business segments. The investment boosted the company’s total funding to $143 million. Mike Massaro, who EY named a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year, is Flywire CEO.