“Can a state retail trade association sustain relevance and revenue by bundling payment processing and insurance services for its member merchants?”
Michigan Retailers Services is the services arm of the Michigan Retailers Association, founded in 1940 as a trade association advocacy body. Over time it expanded into a fee-generating services business for its retail member base, notably operating as a registered ISO for Synovus Bank to offer merchant card processing, and separately running insurance programs under RetailersInsurance.com. The embedded finance angle is narrow: it functions as a payment intermediary (ISO) rather than a full-stack fintech, monetizing its member relationships through payment processing commissions and insurance referrals.
Michigan Retailers Services discloses Synovus Bank as its sponsor bank, according to the Embedded Finance Index 2026.
Michigan Retailers Services does not disclose a bank charter of its own; its banking services are provided through Synovus Bank.
Michigan Retailers Services processes payments through Synovus Bank (sponsor acquirer via ISO relationship).
The Embedded Finance Index 2026 maps 2 layers in Michigan Retailers Services's stack: Payments / PSP (Synovus Bank (sponsor acquirer via ISO relationship)); Sponsor bank (Synovus Bank).
Michigan Retailers Services is founded in 1940 and headquartered in 603 South Washington Avenue, Lansing, MI 48933.
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Michigan Retailers Services 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.