NTT SmartTrade

What NTT SmartTrade does

NTT SmartTrade (NTTスマートトレード株式会社) is a Tokyo-based payment services and BPO provider operating as a subsidiary within the NTT Docomo Group (under NTT Group). Founded in 2006, the company runs a payment gateway that supports nine-plus payment methods for enterprise merchants, including credit card processing (with installment, revolving, bonus, and recurring billing), bank account debits, multiple convenience store payment formats (number notification, barcode, post-pay), payment slip settlement, terminal-based payments, e-money, and email-URL payments. The platform is PCI DSS fully compliant and includes 3D Secure, CVV verification, and stored-card-number functionality to reduce checkout friction.

Beyond payment processing, NTT SmartTrade offers a BPO service line for corporate clients covering bank transfer reconciliation (消込), internet-based transfer agency (振込代行), billing operation support (invoice creation and mailing), and success-fee consulting for transfer fee reduction (完全成功報酬型). It also operates a consumer-facing brand cluster under chocom (ちょコム) — comprising chocom e-Money, chocom Points, chocom Remittance, chocom Shop, and School Fee Smart Payment — which serves individual consumers with internet-only electronic money, loyalty points, and credit-card-based remittance.

The company monetizes primarily through transaction-based payment processing fees across multiple payment methods, supplemented by professional services revenue from BPO engagements and consulting. Distribution is split between a direct enterprise sales motion (phone, web contact form, downloadable brochure) and a channel partner program recruiting agents and dealers across Japan. Target enterprise verticals span utilities (electric, gas), telecom (CATV, ISPs), education (schools, training institutions), real estate rental managers, and commercial associations (商工会). No public revenue, funding history, M&A activity, or international expansion is disclosed in the source data.

Name

NTT SmartTrade

Legal name

NTT Smart Trade Inc.

Website

https://nttsmarttrade.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

NTT SmartTrade is a Tokyo-based payment gateway and BPO services provider, operating as an NTT Docomo Group subsidiary. It serves Japanese enterprise merchants across utilities, telecom, education, and real estate with 9+ payment methods, and consumers via its chocom e-money brand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Payment Settlement Services: Transaction-based payment processing fees from credit card payments, convenience store payments, bank transfers, electronic money, and other payment methods offered to merchants.
2. BPO Services: Bank transfer reconciliation, remittance agency services, billing support services, and transfer fee reduction consulting for enterprise customers.
3. Electronic Money Services (ちょコム): Internet-only electronic money service, point accumulation system, money transfer services, and shop services for individual consumers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

NTT SmartTrade provides a multi-method payment gateway and settlement processing platform for enterprise merchants, supporting credit cards, bank transfers, convenience store payments (number/barcode notification and post-pay), payment slips, terminal payments, e-money, and email payments. The company also offers BPO services including bank transfer reconciliation, transfer agency, billing operations support, and success-fee based consulting on transfer fee reduction, and operates the consumer-facing "chocom" sub-brand for electronic money, points, remittance, and school fee payments.

Product overview

NTT SmartTrade operates as a comprehensive payment processing and BPO services platform. The offering consists of two main segments: (1) Payment services for corporate clients including credit card processing, bank account debits, convenience store payments (with number/barcode notification and post-pay options), payment slips, terminal-based payments, e-money, and email payments; (2) BPO services covering bank transfer reconciliation, transfer agency, billing operations support, and transfer fee consulting. Additionally, the company provides consumer-facing services under the 'chocom' sub-brand, including e-money (chocom e-Money), loyalty points (chocom Points), remittance (chocom Remittance), an e-money shop (chocom Shop), and school fee payment solutions (学費スマート払い). The portfolio includes a payment gateway service component connecting merchants to multiple payment methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ちょコム (Chocom): Consumer-facing brand for electronic money, points, remittance, and shopping services
• ちょコムeマネージャー (Chocom e-Money)
• ちょ콤포인트 (Chocom Point)
• ちょ콤송금 (Chocom Remittance)
• ちょ콤ショップ (Chocom Shop)
• 学費スマート払い (Gakufei Smart Payment)

Products and services

• Credit Card Payment (クレジットカード決済) Credit card payment processing service for merchants supporting installment, revolving, and bonus payments, as well as recurring billing for digital content and small-amount charges.
• Bank Transfer (口座振替) Direct bank account debit service for recurring or one-time payments from customer bank accounts.
• Convenience Store Payment - Number Notification (コンビニ決済｜番号通知) Convenience store payment service where customers receive a payment number to complete transactions at participating convenience stores.
• Convenience Store Payment - Barcode Notification (コンビニ決済｜バーコード通知) Convenience store payment service using barcode scanning at checkout registers.
• Convenience Store Post-Pay (コンビニ後払い決済) Post-pay payment option at convenience stores allowing customers to pay after receiving goods or services.
• Payment Slip Settlement (払込票決済) Payment slip-based settlement service for invoices and billing documents.
• Terminal Payment (端末決済) Physical terminal-based payment processing for face-to-face transactions at retail locations.
• E-money Payment (電子マネー決済) Electronic money payment processing for various digital wallet and e-money platforms.
• Email Payment (メール決済) Email-based payment service that sends payment URLs to customers via email after purchase completion, reducing merchant integration costs.
• Bank Transfer Matching Service (銀行振込消込サービス) Automated matching service that reconciles bank transfer payments with orders, reducing manual verification time and effort.
• Transfer Agency Service (振込代行サービス) Internet-based transfer and remittance service for corporate clients, enabling efficient fund transfers with reduced transaction fees.
• Billing Support Service (請求業務サポートサービス) Billing operation support including invoice creation, mailing, and delivery, reducing administrative workload and costs.
• Transfer Fee Reduction Consulting (振込手数料削減コンサルティング) Success-based consulting service that provides advice on reducing bank transfer fees for corporate clients.
• chocom e-Money (ちょコムeマネー) Internet-only electronic money service enabling online shopping purchases and transactions for individual consumers.
• chocom Points (ちょコムポイント) Loyalty points program that rewards users with points for online shopping and member registration activities.
• chocom Remittance (ちょコム送金) Remittance service allowing users to make bank payments or receive transfers using credit cards.
• chocom Shop (ちょコムショップ) Online shop for purchasing popular electronic money products using credit cards.
• School Fee Smart Payment (学費スマート払い) Credit card payment service for educational expenses including tuition, enrollment fees, and other school-related charges.

Quantifiable outcome

• Transfer fee reduction through success-fee consulting

Named customers8 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• NTT DocomocoreOthersParent company relationship as subsidiary within the NTT Docomo Group. NTT SmartTrade operates as a group company providing payment and settlement services under the NTT Docomo corporate umbrella.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• GMO Payment Gateway: Japan's largest online payment processor, offering multi-method merchant gateways (credit card, convenience store, bank transfer, e-money) and recurring billing — directly overlapping NTT SmartTrade's enterprise payment service line and B2B2C scale.
• Veritrans (DG Financial Technology): Direct domestic competitor providing hosted multi-payment checkout, convenience store post-pay, and bank transfers to Japanese merchants — a near-mirror of NTT SmartTrade's core gateway offering.
• SBPS (SoftBank Payment Service): SoftBank Group's payment processing arm offering credit card, convenience store, and carrier-billed payments to Japanese merchants, overlapping almost 1:1 with NTT SmartTrade's payment services portfolio.
• Net Protections: Specialist in convenience-store post-pay (後払い) and BNPL for Japanese e-commerce merchants — the closest direct comp to NTT SmartTrade's コンビニ後払い決済 product line.
• Epsilon (now SBPS affiliate): Japanese payment service provider offering credit card processing, convenience store payments, and bank transfers, with overlapping merchant focus and similar mid-market enterprise positioning as NTT SmartTrade.
• Paygent: Joint venture payment processor for Japanese merchants providing credit card and multi-method checkout services — directly comparable gateway product line to NTT SmartTrade.

Broad incumbents

• PayPay: Japan's dominant QR-code payment wallet from Yahoo/Z Holdings — competes with NTT SmartTrade's chocom e-money at the consumer level and increasingly at the merchant acceptance layer.
• Stripe Japan: Global payment infrastructure provider with growing Japanese enterprise presence, offering developer-friendly gateway and checkout APIs that increasingly compete for the same Japanese merchants as NTT SmartTrade.
• Digital Garage: Parent of Veritrans, providing payments, marketing, and fintech infrastructure in Japan; a broader incumbent competing across multiple payment and BPO adjacencies relevant to NTT SmartTrade's enterprise base.

Emerging players

• Komoju: Japan-focused payment gateway serving cross-border merchants with local payment methods (Konbini, bank transfer, e-money) — competing with NTT SmartTrade in the multi-method Japan checkout category, especially for digital and subscription merchants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about NTT SmartTrade