“Can a payments ISO build a sticky, proprietary processing platform (Privvy) that captures software platform partners and merchants that larger processors underserve?”
Founded in 2017, Defyne Payments operates as a registered Independent Sales Organization (ISO) under sponsor banks Pathward, N.A. and Esquire Bank, N.A., serving over 15,000 merchants and 200 ISOs/ISVs across the United States. The company differentiates through its proprietary Privvy payment platform, which provides API-based payment integration for enterprise software, POS, and eCommerce systems. Rather than competing directly with Stripe or Adyen, Defyne positions itself as a channel-partner-friendly ISO focused on merchant services, dual pricing/surcharge programs, and white-label processing for software platforms.
Defyne Payments discloses Pathward, N.A. / Esquire Bank, N.A. as its sponsor bank, according to the Embedded Finance Index 2026.
Defyne Payments does not disclose a bank charter of its own; its banking services are provided through Pathward, N.A. / Esquire Bank, N.A..
Defyne Payments processes payments through Defyne Payments / Privvy (self-operated). Disclosed money-movement rails: ACH.
The Embedded Finance Index 2026 maps 3 layers in Defyne Payments's stack: Payments / PSP (Defyne Payments / Privvy (self-operated)); Money movement (ACH); Sponsor bank (Pathward, N.A. / Esquire Bank, N.A.).
Defyne Payments was founded by Duayne Haskett and Steve Palazzo and is founded in 2017, headquartered in United States.
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Defyne Payments and the rest of its category — what they built versus bought, which providers they use, and where the gaps in your own strategy and competitive set actually are.