Build or Buy? A Payments Leader's Framework for Smarter Vendor Decisions

The Merchant Advisory Group hosts a one-hour build vs buy payments webinar on one of the most common dilemmas in payments operations: build a capability in-house or buy it from a vendor. Drawing on real merchant experiences across industries, the session offers a structured framework for the decision based on company size, resources and strategic priorities. It covers how to calculate the true cost of an in-house build, including engineering, maintenance, specialist knowledge and the cost of keeping up with changing network rules, how to define requirements before evaluating vendors, and what a meaningful proof of concept and vendor evaluation should look like. The webinar starts at 12:00 pm Central time on 17 November 2026.

Who should attend

Merchant payments leaders, payment product owners and procurement teams choosing between internal development and vendors such as gateways, orchestration or fraud tools — and vendors who want to understand how merchants evaluate them.

Tickets and access

The live webinar is open to all; the recording is available to MAG members and sponsors.