Microsoft Scales EMEA Payments with Checkout.com

Microsoft’s decision to partner with Checkout.com to power payments across EMEA marks a significant moment in the evolution of enterprise-scale digital commerce.

As one of the world’s largest providers of cloud infrastructure and software services, Microsoft operates at a level where payments performance directly impacts user experience, revenue continuity and platform reliability.

By integrating Checkout.com’s cloud-native payments platform across key products including Xbox, Microsoft 365 and Azure, the company is reinforcing the importance of scalable, resilient and high-performing payment architecture.

The agreement highlights a broader trend among global technology leaders: treating payments not as a back-end function, but as a strategic enabler of growth.

For Checkout.com, the partnership signals continued momentum in enterprise fintech, positioning the company as a critical infrastructure provider to some of the world’s most demanding digital ecosystems.

Infrastructure integration

Checkout.com will integrate directly with Microsoft’s Payments API, enabling transactions to be routed through a unified system designed to standardise payment experiences across both consumer and enterprise channels.

As part of the rollout, Microsoft will leverage Checkout.com’s regional acquiring capabilities alongside its Intelligent Acceptance engine, an AI-driven optimisation tool that uses real-time network data to dynamically route payments, reduce card declines and improve authorisation rates.

The proprietary technology has already delivered measurable impact at scale, unlocking more than US$20bn in merchant revenue while executing approximately 26,000 optimisations per minute.

Microsoft’s treasury function cited improved processing efficiency and Checkout.com’s global acquiring footprint as key factors underpinning the decision, reflecting a broader strategic focus on payments performance as a driver of operational resilience and revenue optimisation.

Pankaj Gudimella, General Manager, Microsoft Treasury, says: “As a global business, we need payments partners that can support our business lines with a unified, high-performance way to accept payments worldwide.

“Checkout.com brings a modern payments platform, along with strong payments expertise and robust global acquiring capabilities.

“Their technology supports the performance and reliability we need as we continue to enhance the commerce experience across Microsoft’s products and services.”

Payments infrastructure at scale 

Landing Microsoft as an enterprise client underscores growing demand for unified, flexible payment architectures capable of operating at global scale.

For Checkout.com, the partnership reinforces its positioning as a core infrastructure provider for digital-first businesses seeking to optimise performance, resilience and cost efficiency across complex payment environments.

“Microsoft has been at the forefront of every major technological shift – from the rise of personal computing to the cloud, and now AI,” says Guillaume Pousaz, CEO and Founder of Checkout.com.

“Supporting a company with this depth of legacy and forward momentum requires payments infrastructure that is resilient, adaptable and engineered for continuous innovation.

“This is a testament to the performance and flexibility our platform delivers, and we’re proud to play a role in powering the commerce layer behind the technologies millions rely on every day.”

The rollout will be phased across key EMEA markets, integrating directly into Microsoft’s treasury workflows to enhance approval rates and optimise processing costs at a regional level.

Checkout.com, headquartered in London, supports payments in more than 145 currencies and processed more than US$300bn in ecommerce volume in 2025, serving global clients including Spotify, eBay, Uber and Klarna.