Latest Articles
5 Payment Gateways for Your Online Store in Trinidad & Tobago- A Quick Guide
Once upon a time in Trinidad & Tobago, an online payment gateway was akin to a unicorn, nay… papa bois or La Diablesse… a sighting was rare. Today we have enough to count on one hand, and using all five fingers. Yes, five, and there are actually a few more, but these five are what we’ve been recommending to our clients.
Not all gateways are equal. Like a car, they all take you from point A to B, but each has their own unique features that make them distinct. Also like cars, they can be categorized into tiers, from BMW down to your Nissan Tiida.
Five (5) payment gateways available in T&T
This is a numbered list, not a quality/performance ranking. Ranking is based on the underlying framework of the gateways that lend themselves to a level of robustness that can be generally compared.
- Powertranz (formely First Atlantic Commerce)
- Scotiabank eCom+
- Fygaro
- WiPay
- PayWise
If they are to be ranked, they can actually be grouped into three tiers, again, by virtue of the robustness of the platforms.
Payment gateway grouping & tiers
In a three-tier ranking, there’s obviously a top, middle and lower tier. The point A to B thing is what they have in common, which is they satisfy the basic definition of a payment gateway is in e-commerce:
a secure software that connects an online store, the customer, and financial institutions to process credit/debit cards and other digital payments, securely encrypting sensitive data and verifying transactions in real-time for a smooth checkout.
TOP TIER: Merchant Account based, with custom integration
POWERTRANZ, SCOTIABANK ECOM+
Integrations:
Powertranz, formerly First Atlantic Commerce (FAC) was the first such gateway to be introduced to Trinidad & Tobago way back in 2011, and is currently available at all local banks.
Scotiabank eCom+ is newer, introduced in 2022 and exclusive to Scotiabank. Both are what we call ‘bona fide’ payment gateways, in that they interact with financial institutions directly.
This gateway requires what’s called a merchant account, which is the technical name for a bank account that acts as an intermediary to hold funds obtained from electronic payments, like credit/debit cards, before transferring them to the business’s main bank account.
The payment framework used by these gateways is called the Hosted Payment Page (HPP), which redirects customers to a secure page during the checkout process, which is hosted by the gateway. This means that the your customer will see the gateway’s HPP where they will enter their credit card details, evidenced by a change in the URL on the browser.
Once the transaction is completed, the customer is redirected back to the online store. Note, the HPP format is required by all banks’ for our integrations here in Trinidad & Tobago; there is no option for a direct integration where your customer does not leave your site.
Why this is Top Tier
These gateways are top tier because they use an optimal payment process, have a high level of inherent security, and have the maximum options and features offered by any gateway currently available in Trinidad & Tobago.
SECOND TIER: Merchant Account based, integration via plug-in
FYGARO
Integrations:
Fygaro is a Latin American based e-commerce platform that allows credit card payments from WooCommerce with direct settlement to your bank account in Trinidad & Tobago, also via a merchant account.
The distinct element of Fygaro is it WooCommerce plug-in, readily able to simply ‘plug-in’ without needing a developer for custom coding; just configure with your account to start accepting credit cards.
It is noteworthy that Fygaro does not charge transactions fees; their fee is as low as a flat $4.99 USD per month. There would be the standard fees payable to your bank for the service and the customary credit card fees.
Sign up is via the Fygaro site which is followed by sign up through your bank. Fygaro has established relationships with all major banks in Trinidad & Tobago.
Why this is Second Tier
Fygaro is second tier as its features are not as robust as the top tier gateways. Being merchant account based, it ranks as a more preferred payment process because banks are directly involved.
TIER THREE: Payment Aggregators
WIPAY, PAYWISE
Integrations:
These two are homegrown solutions, and though WiPay may be easily recognizable, it’s actually PayWise that is older, being established in 2013, while WiPay came about a few years later in 2017. They follow a payment model technically known as a payment aggregator.
In e-commerce, a payment aggregator acts as an intermediary/facilitator of online payments. They use their financial technology to simplify the process of accepting electronic payments for businesses so that the online store won’t have to go through the complicated process of the top tier merchant account based solution. Essentially, they provide merchants with a sub-merchant account under their own master merchant ID.
In practice, this model was popularized by PayPal, who Trinis have a real ‘tabanca’ with still. Let it be known here in 2026 that PayPal still does not work in Trinidad & Tobago, and for the near future, will not work, and for the distant future, will not work. Boil whatever you have to boil, drink it and get it out of your system.
Both WiPay and PayWise are free to sign up and have free WooCommerce plug-ins to allow for easy integration. Unlike Fygaro which has just only a flat monthly fee, they charge a processing fee, which is their revenue model.
Why this is Third Tier
Payment aggregators are bottom-rung because they offer the most minimum options and features, and are the simplest payment option to implement. They provide primarily functionality and a lower level of merchant support.
Conclusion
Trinis are every skeptical of using their credit cards online and are concerned about the online fraud. Merchants are also concerned about fraudulent credit card purchases lest they are already parted with their goods when a chargeback occurs. The three tiers are not bulletproof when comes to this, but you can easily evaluate the probabilities.
One of the best ways to mitigate against this is to provide a bank transfer option, or Linx on delivery, which allows customers to spend money they actually have. Online bank transfers generally process quickly in Trinidad & Tobago, many same day. Merchants also save on processing fees which can add up.
So think about this option when considering a payment gateway.
