PayCore

What PayCore does

PayCore is a Turkey-headquartered fintech infrastructure provider founded in 2001, operating as Kartek Holding A.Ş. and now part of Param following an August 2023 combination. The company builds end-to-end payment technology for banks, payment service providers, e-money institutions, retailers, and public-sector clients across more than 30 countries, with disclosed scale of 250+ clients and 3+ billion transactions processed annually through its Ocean platform.

Its core product, the Ocean Unified Card Management Platform (with the cloud-native Ocean 3.0 release on AWS), unifies issuing, acquiring, fraud management, loyalty, tokenization, and digital wallet/acceptance functions (Apple Pay, Google Pay, QR, HCE, SoftPOS) on an API-first architecture available as SaaS or PaaS. The portfolio additionally includes L2 EMV kernel certification support across 13+ card schemes, HSM distribution (authorized dealer for Thales and Safenet/Gemalto), card personalization systems, Manage ATM and the jointly developed Smart ATM Cockpit with Diebold Nixdorf, biometric security, payment terminals, POS network devices, and the regulated TCMB PayCore Takas Sistemi clearing operation in Turkey.

PayCore monetizes through a diversified stack: recurring SaaS/PaaS subscriptions, transaction-based processing fees, one-time software licenses (notably EMV kernel), hardware resale, and project-based professional services. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales with channel partnerships (Geidea for Saudi Arabia, Global Payments s.r.o. for Central Europe) and the Temenos Exchange marketplace, which exposes Ocean to approximately 3,000 banking clients in 150 countries. Certification breadth (PCI DSS PIN, ISAE 3402, full ISO suite, Mastercard GVCP, Visa Member Agent, BKM, Turkish Law 6493, KVKK/GDPR) functions as a regulatory entry barrier that anchors the company's positioning against cloud-native competitors in EMEA.

Name

PayCore

Legal name

Kartek Holding A.Ş.

Website

https://paycore.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

PayCore is a Turkish fintech infrastructure provider building end-to-end card management, payment processing, and SoftPOS technology for 250+ banks, PSPs, e-money institutions, and retailers across 30+ countries via its Ocean platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payment Processing Software

NAICS

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)

SIC

Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSAMABAA

Integrated Payment Processors (PSP/Acquirer)

Financial & Insurance/Payments & Transaction Processing/Payment Processors & Merchant Acquirers

SECONDARYFSAGABAO

POS, SoftPOS & In-Person Acceptance Infrastructure

Financial & Insurance/Financial Technology (Fintech)/Payment Orchestration & Fintech Infrastructure (APIs, Issuing, Processing)

SECONDARYFSAMADAG

EMV Chip, Magstripe & PIN Debit Acceptance

Financial & Insurance/Payments & Transaction Processing/Point-of-Sale (POS) Payments & Terminals

SECONDARYFSAGALAB

Embedded Payments (Pay-ins, Pay-outs, Wallets)

Financial & Insurance/Financial Technology (Fintech)/Embedded Finance & Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS)

SECONDARYFSAGABAB

Payment Gateways & API Connectivity

Financial & Insurance/Financial Technology (Fintech)/Payment Orchestration & Fintech Infrastructure (APIs, Issuing, Processing)

Keywords

• Card management software
• Payment processing services
• EMV kernel solutions
• SoftPOS technology
• Payment hardware products

Headquarters

HQ city

Istanbul

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Processing Services: Transaction processing for issuing and acquiring operations, processing billions of transactions annually across banks and payment institutions.
2. SaaS/PaaS Platform: Ocean platform offered as Software-as-a-Service or Platform-as-a-Service for card management and payment processing.
3. Software Licenses: EMV Kernel, card personalization, and other software solutions licensed to financial institutions.
4. Payment Hardware Products: HSM (Hardware Security Modules), card personalization devices, payment terminals, and POS network devices. PayCore is authorized dealer and gold partner of Thales and Safenet/Gemalto.
5. Professional Services: Consulting, implementation, and certification support services for EMV and payment system migrations.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

PayCore provides end-to-end payment technology infrastructure for financial institutions and payment service providers, anchored by its Ocean unified card management platform (cloud-native, API-first, available as SaaS and PaaS) covering card issuing, acquiring, fraud management, loyalty, tokenization, digital wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay), QR, HCE, and SoftPOS. The company also delivers EMV L2 kernel certification support, processing services, ATM management software, and payment hardware products including HSM, card personalization systems, POS terminals, biometric security, and POS network devices.

Product overview

PayCore provides end-to-end payment technology solutions spanning three main categories: Core Payments Solutions (software platform), Processing Services, and Payment Hardware Products. The flagship Ocean platform serves as the unified card management system (issuing and acquiring) with its cloud-native Ocean 3.0 version running on AWS. The platform supports all major card schemes (Visa, Mastercard, AMEX, Discover, JCB, CUP, Rupay, PURE, TROY) and digital payment methods (Apple Pay, Google Pay, QR, HCE, SoftPOS). EMV Kernel provides L2 certification support for terminal manufacturers. SoftPOS enables Android smartphones as POS terminals. Manage ATM and Smart ATM Cockpit address ATM management. Processing Services include issuing, acquiring, digital card, and clearing operations (TCMB PayCore Takas Sistemi). Payment Hardware Products include HSM, card personalization devices, terminals, biometric security, and POS network devices. The company operates API-first with cloud-native architecture and serves 250+ clients across 30+ countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ocean: Unified Card Management Platform - SaaS & PaaS enabling high-level business benefits for banks, payment service providers, and e-money institutions.

Products and services

• Ocean Unified Card Management Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 3+ billion transactions processed annually through Ocean platform
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered regional and core.

• TwistoregionalTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2026European fintech company using Ocean 3.0 platform on AWS with Apple Pay and Google Pay support, representing first major European reference for cloud-native processing deployment.
• TemenoscoreTechnology or Integration · 1 May 2023PayCore's Ocean Unified Card Management Platform is live on Temenos Exchange, enabling deployment across 3000+ banks in 150 countries through pre-integrated fintech solutions.
• Global Payments s.r.o.regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCentral Europe's leading payment company distributing PayCore SoftPOS in Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Austria, and other Central European countries.
• GeidearegionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSaudi Arabia's largest fintech company with 70% market share in POS products and services, deploying PayCore SoftPOS nationwide to support Kingdom's cashless society goals.
• Diebold NixdorfregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of Smart ATM Cockpit powered by Vynamic View, combining PayCore's Manage ATM product with Diebold Nixdorf's ATM monitoring software for comprehensive ATM management.
• Shell & TurcasregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerPayCore provides payment infrastructure for Shell Vehicle Recognition System enabling credit card payments at 1000+ fuel stations across Turkey for fleet cash management.
• VisacoreTechnology or IntegrationVisa Ready partner with PIN on Glass SoftPOS certification. PayCore became first Turkish company to receive Visa approval for PIN-supported SoftPOS.
• MastercardcoreTechnology or IntegrationMastercard-certified PIN-supported SoftPOS technology. PayCore received certification enabling global distribution of SoftPOS solution through financial institutions.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/paycoregroup
• Xx.com/paycoregroup
• Facebookfacebook.com/PaycoreGroup

Compliance13 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PayCore