Wind River Payments
Wind River Payments is a family-owned, Madison-based payment processor founded in 1999 that provides credit card and ACH processing, integrated and white-label payments, and developer APIs to merchants, software providers, financial institutions, and trade associations across the United States and Canada.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersMadison, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Wind River Payments does
Wind River Payments, founded in 1999 in Madison, Wisconsin by brothers-in-law Matt Uselman and Mark Courchane, is a privately held, family-owned payment processor operating as a Registered ISO/MSP of Pinnacle Bank (Synovus) and as an Independent Sales Organization of Fiserv Canada Ltd. The company serves merchants, software providers (ISVs seeking embedded and white-label payments), financial institutions (banks and credit unions referring business customers), and trade associations across the United States and Canada. Its product portfolio spans integrated and white-label payments, online, in-person, and mobile processing, ACH, recurring billing, credit card account updater, chargeback prevention, and PCI compliance services.
The technology stack centers on a payment gateway accessible via API, supporting Card Present, Ecommerce, Card Not Present, Hosted Payment Page, and Reporting integration methods, with proprietary components including Collect.js (a JavaScript tokenization framework that keeps sensitive payment data off merchant servers), Collect Checkout (a fully hosted checkout page), Customer-Present Cloud (browser-based retail terminal processing without an installed SDK), and an Online Reporting Interface that supports accounting-software integrations. Revenue is generated through transaction-based fees on credit card and ACH processing, with a revenue-share program for software partners and associations built on transparent denominator calculations. At-will agreements, dedicated relationship managers, and transparent pricing are positioned as core service differentiators rather than technology lock-in.
The go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, combining direct sales with a three-pronged channel strategy: software providers embedding payments, financial institutions referring business banking customers, and trade associations endorsing Wind River as a preferred provider to their members. The firm is small (11-50 employees), has no private equity investors, and has explicitly avoided mergers and acquisitions, positioning itself around stability, ethical conduct (2024 BBB Torch Award for Ethics), and employee retention (Top Places to Work 2025 and 2026) as competitive differentiators in a sector frequently criticized for opaque pricing.
Wind River Payments firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Wind River Payments
- Legal name
- Wind River Financial
- Website
- https://windriverpayments.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Wind River Payments is a family-owned, Madison-based payment processor founded in 1999 that provides credit card and ACH processing, integrated and white-label payments, and developer APIs to merchants, software providers, financial institutions, and trade associations across the United States and Canada.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Wind River Payments is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Madison
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Wind River Payments business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Payment Processing Transaction Fees: Revenue generated from processing credit card and ACH payments for merchants. The company shares revenue with software partners based on transparent percentage calculations.
- Revenue Share Program: Wind River shares revenue with software partners and associations. They provide transparent denominator calculations so partners know the true percentage of revenue being shared.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Transparent, competitive pricing model with no hidden fees |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Wind River Payments product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Wind River Payments is a payment processor that delivers credit card processing, ACH, and contactless payment services to merchants, while also providing an embedded payments platform for software providers (ISVs) and white-label payment programs for partners. The company sells its proprietary payment gateway, API integration tools, and developer resources so that software platforms and channel partners can offer payment processing under their own brand or directly to their merchant customers.
Product overview
Wind River Payments is an embedded payments platform offering solutions for both software providers and merchants. The core products include Integrated Payments (enabling software providers to embed payment processing) and White Label Payments, alongside merchant services covering Online Payments, In-Person Payments, and Mobile Payments. Additional modules include ACH Payments, Credit Card Account Updater, Recurring Payments, Chargeback Prevention, and PCI Compliance Services. Developer Resources with API documentation support integration into websites and mobile applications. The company serves diverse vertical markets including ERP, Field Services, Healthcare, Dental, Veterinary, and Optometry.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Integrated Payments Embedded payment processing solution enabling software providers (ISVs) to integrate credit card and ACH acceptance directly into their software platforms across verticals such as ERP, field services, lodging and hospitality, pharmacy management, and practice management.
- White Label Payments Payment program that allows partners to offer credit card and ACH processing under their own brand identity, with a transparent revenue share structure.
- Payment Processing for Merchants Comprehensive payment processing services for merchants covering online, in-person, and mobile payment acceptance with credit card and ACH support.
- Online Payments E-commerce payment processing for accepting credit card and ACH transactions through websites and online checkout.
- In-Person Payments Point-of-sale payment processing for retail and brick-and-mortar merchant locations, including contactless acceptance.
- Mobile Payments Mobile payment acceptance capability enabling merchants to take card payments on smartphones and tablets in the field.
- ACH Payments Automated Clearing House payment processing for electronic fund transfers, including recurring debits and business-to-business transfers.
- Recurring Payments Subscription and recurring billing management for merchants with ongoing customer payment needs.
- Chargeback Prevention Tools and services to help merchants prevent and manage chargebacks across card networks.
- Developer Resources API documentation, integration guides, sandbox environment, and developer portal resources for integrating Wind River payment capabilities into third-party software and applications.
Quantifiable outcome
- Customer retention rate 3x industry average
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Wind River Payments
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Wind River Payments technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Wind River Payments partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Data Management AssociatescoreSoftware provider partner since 2020. Data Management Associates integrates Wind River payments into their software platform. Co-Founder Randy Nettling values the relationship and responsiveness, noting they always know who to call and get prompt expert answers.
- Port Washington State BankcoreFinancial institution partner since 2018. Port Washington State Bank refers business customers to Wind River for payment processing services. They praise Wind River's customer service as second to none and appreciate having the same representative throughout their tenure.
- Minnesota Optometric AssociationcoreAssociation partner since 2013. MOA endorses Wind River as the preferred provider of electronic payment acceptance and credit card processing services for its members. Creates non-dues revenue stream for MOA while providing members competitive rates and transparent pricing.
- College of Optometrists in Vision DevelopmentcoreAssociation partner. COVD works with Wind River to provide payment processing services to its members.
- STAFDAcoreTrade association partner for distributors and manufacturers. STAFDA vetted and recommends Wind River to its members as a preferred payment services partner.
- Wisconsin Bankers AssociationcoreAssociation partner. WBA works with Wind River to provide payment processing referrals to member banks and their business customers.
- Wisconsin Optometric AssociationcoreAssociation partner. WOA endorses Wind River to its member optometry practices for payment processing services.
- SRS Pharmacy SolutionscoreSoftware partner since 2009. Director of Operations Todd Hook values the partnership stating it has been a complete win for everyone. Uses Wind River for integrated pharmacy management payments.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Wind River Payments competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Helcim: SMB-focused payment processor and ISO that markets transparent interchange-plus pricing and direct merchant relationships. Comparable to Wind River on positioning around pricing transparency and SMB service.
- Stax: Subscription-based payment facilitator targeting SMBs and software partners, offering transparent pricing and embedded payments. Closely comparable to Wind River's ISO/MSP model with a software-channel emphasis.
- PaymentCloud: ISO/MSP serving SMBs and high-risk verticals with broad software integrations. Comparable to Wind River's ISO model with an emphasis on partnership-driven distribution.
- National Processing: Established ISO offering merchant services with partner/reseller programs. Directly comparable on ISO economics, partner channel, and SMB-to-mid-market merchant base.
- CDG Commerce: Merchant services provider offering transparent pricing and relationship-driven account management. Similar in size and approach to Wind River, including a focus on SMB and mid-market merchants.
- Gravity Payments: Independent merchant services ISO competing on relationship-driven service and transparent pricing. Directly comparable to Wind River's relationship-led, mid-market/SMB positioning.
- BlueSnap: Payment platform with strong ISV and embedded-payments capabilities, white-label offerings, and global acquiring. Comparable to Wind River on the software-provider channel and white-label positioning.
Broad incumbents
- Block (Square): Public fintech providing Square merchant processing and developer-oriented payments APIs. Overlaps with Wind River in SMB and software-driven merchant acquiring, but with materially more capital and product breadth.
- Heartland Payment Systems (Global Payments): Large US merchant acquirer within Global Payments, offering full-stack payment processing with broad vertical coverage. Overlaps with Wind River in SMB and ISV segments but at significantly greater scale.
- Stripe: Dominant developer-first payment platform with embedded payments products (Stripe Connect, Stripe Terminal). Competes with Wind River for ISV integrations but operates at vastly larger scale with global reach.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Wind River Payments social profiles
Digital presenceWind River Payments financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Wind River Payments leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Wind River Payments funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Wind River Payments M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Wind River Payments
What does Wind River Payments do?
Wind River Payments is a payment processor that delivers credit card processing, ACH, and contactless payment services to merchants, while also providing an embedded payments platform for software providers (ISVs) and white-label payment programs for partners. The company sells its proprietary payment gateway, API integration tools, and developer resources so that software platforms and channel partners can offer payment processing under their own brand or directly to their merchant customers.
Is Wind River Payments a public or private company?
Wind River Payments is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Wind River Payments founded?
Wind River Payments was founded in 1999. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Wind River Payments based?
Wind River Payments is headquartered in Madison, United States, in the North America region.
How does Wind River Payments make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Payment Processing Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are revenue Share Program.
Who are Wind River Payments's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Helcim, Stax, PaymentCloud, National Processing, CDG Commerce, Gravity Payments and BlueSnap. Broad incumbents are Block (Square), Heartland Payment Systems (Global Payments) and Stripe.
Does Wind River Payments have an API?
Yes. Wind River Payments provides an API for integrating their payment gateway into websites or mobile devices. The developer portal offers documentation for multiple integration methods including Card Present, Ecommerce and Card Not Present, Hosted Payment Page, and Reporting. Access to the sandbox requires email registration to receive an API key. Developer documentation is at secure.windriverfinancialgateway.com/merchants/resources/integration/integration_portal.php?tid=b2ebc5540b4a68ee57aaa1b6a0c5875b#integration_overview.