Global payments platform Checkout.com has officially launched its direct acquiring services in Canada. Marking a major expansion into one of the fastest-growing digital commerce markets in North America. As part of this strategic move, the company has also appointed Zack Levine as Head of Revenue, North America, strengthening its leadership team to drive regional growth and merchant enablement.
The announcement comes at a time when Canadian e-commerce is booming, with increasing demand for high-performance, localized, and scalable payment infrastructure that can support both domestic and cross-border merchants.
Strengthening Checkout.com’s North American Presence
Checkout.com’s entry into the Canadian market signals the company’s commitment to becoming a comprehensive payments partner across North America. With existing operations in the U.S., the expansion allows the company to now offer merchants a seamless, region-wide acquiring experience supported by local expertise, advanced technology, and unified payment rails.
“Our investment in Canada is about more than geography—it’s about helping merchants access the most sophisticated, performance-driven payments platform in the world,” said Zack Levine, newly appointed Head of Revenue for North America. “Canadian ecommerce is accelerating, and businesses are looking for partners who can deliver tangible performance gains—from higher acceptance rates to faster settlements and deeper data insights.”
Why Canada? A Market Ready for Scalable Payments
Canada represents a significant opportunity for digital payment providers:
- According to Statista, Canada’s e-commerce market generated over CA$52 billion in sales in 2024, with projections to exceed CA$65 billion by 2026.
- There are currently more than 27 million online shoppers in Canada, making it the 9th largest e-commerce market globally.
- Research from Checkout.com’s 2025 Digital Economy Index reveals that 11.5% of total Canadian retail spending now occurs online, while 18% of Gen Z consumers shop online daily.
- Notably, 62% of Canadian consumers shop cross-border, underlining the importance of global acquiring capabilities for merchants targeting Canadian buyers.
These figures make Canada not just a key ecommerce hub but also a strategic bridge between North American and international commerce—a sweet spot for fintech platforms that can offer intelligent routing, fraud protection, and real-time analytics.
Launching Direct Acquiring in Canada
With its new direct acquiring capabilities, Checkout.com enables merchants in Canada to process payments directly through its own acquiring network, rather than relying on third-party providers. This model ensures merchants benefit from:
- Improved authorization rates, due to better local bank relationships and optimized transaction routing.
- Faster settlement times, giving finance teams greater visibility and control over cash flow.
- Lower latency and higher uptime, especially important for high-volume and high-velocity ecommerce businesses.
- Full-stack visibility into transaction-level data, allowing for granular analysis, performance tracking, and fraud management.
Merchants can access these features through a single, unified integration across Checkout.com’s platform, which also includes pay-in and payout capabilities across major card networks, bank transfers (such as Interac and ACH), wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay, and other methods, including PayPal, Venmo, and Pinless Debit.
Zack Levine to Lead North American Revenue Operations
To spearhead its expanded presence, Checkout.com has appointed Zack Levine as Head of Revenue for North America. Levine first joined the company in 2021 to lead U.S. commercial operations and later served as General Manager for Checkout.com’s Israel business. In his new role, he will oversee all aspects of the company’s go-to-market strategy in the U.S. and Canada, including:
- Enterprise sales
- Business development
- Account management
- Solutions engineering
Speaking on his appointment, Levine stated:
“North America is undergoing a fundamental transformation in how payments are made and monetized. Our goal is to help enterprise merchants not just adapt but thrive in this environment—with technology that delivers measurable impact in authorization performance, conversion, fraud reduction, and cost savings.”
A Fast-Growing Fintech with Global Ambitions
Checkout.com’s expansion in Canada follows a period of strong momentum across its North American operations. In 2024, the company recorded an 80% year-over-year growth in its U.S. business, solidifying the region as its fastest-growing market globally. The company recently opened a new office in San Francisco, complementing its U.S. headquarters in New York and regional hub in Atlanta.
Globally, Checkout.com serves some of the most prominent brands in ecommerce, SaaS, and fintech—including Netflix, Klarna, Farfetch, and Grab. Its modular API-based platform is favored by enterprise finance and tech teams for its flexibility, scalability, and deep analytics capabilities.
Antoine Nougué, Chief Commercial Officer at Checkout.com, commented:
“Canada is a natural extension of our North American strategy. With rising consumer expectations and the complexity of international payments, our mission is to give merchants full control and transparency over their payment flows. Under Zack’s leadership, we are confident in our ability to help merchants deliver frictionless experiences to Canadian customers and beyond.”
The Competitive Landscape: A Strategic Play
Canada’s payment infrastructure has historically been dominated by a few legacy acquiring institutions. With the entrance of Checkout.com, the market is set to become more competitive, especially in sectors like:
- Cross-border retail
- Digital subscriptions
- Marketplace platforms
- SaaS and B2B payments
Checkout.com’s value proposition lies in its full-stack payment processing, enabling merchants to simplify their vendor stack, reduce technical debt, and scale globally with a single payments partner.
According to data from McKinsey, companies that optimize payments infrastructure can unlock up to 3% additional revenue through reduced cart abandonment, increased approval rates, and lower fraud losses.
For CFOs and revenue teams, the direct impact on gross margin and operational efficiency makes evaluating new PSPs a strategic necessity, not just a tech upgrade.
Checkout.com’s Canadian expansion, backed by a proven North American leadership strategy and direct acquiring technology, positions the company as a serious contender in the race to define the next generation of enterprise-grade payments platforms. As e-commerce and fintech continue to converge, Checkout.com’s growth strategy underscores a clear message to the market: performance is the new competitive advantage.
About Checkout.com
Founded in 2012, Checkout.com is a global payments platform that helps enterprises accept, process, and disburse funds via a unified cloud-based platform. The company operates across Europe, MENA, Asia-Pacific, and North America, and is valued among the most prominent privately held fintech firms globally.
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