Legal & Terms of Use

Who operates this site

The Payments Trace is an independent online publication operated by Vishwanath Callikan, an individual based in England, United Kingdom. It is not a company or a separate legal entity, and the name is used as a publishing brand only. Articles and essays are researched and written in a personal capacity. You can reach the operator by message on LinkedIn. Complaints about the site go to complaints@thepaymentstrace.com. A service address is available on written request.

Using this content

Except where otherwise stated, © 2026 Vishwanath Callikan, operating The Payments Trace. All rights reserved. The site is provided for personal, non-commercial reading. Brief extracts of any article may be quoted with clear attribution to Vishwanath Callikan and The Payments Trace and a link to the original article; republishing an article in full, or reproducing a substantial part of one, requires prior written permission. Automated scraping or bulk reproduction of the site’s content is not permitted.

Third-party extracts are included only where considered permitted by applicable law, including for quotation, commentary, criticism, review or reporting, and are acknowledged wherever practicable. Third-party names, logos and trade marks remain the property of their respective owners: they are used for identification and editorial discussion only, and their appearance does not imply affiliation, sponsorship, approval or endorsement in either direction.

No advice

Content on this site is general editorial information and industry analysis. It is not personalised investment, financial, legal, tax or other professional advice, and it is not a substitute for advice addressing your particular circumstances. References to Global Payments Inc. (NYSE: GPN), its share price, or any other publicly traded company or security are not recommendations, offers or solicitations to buy, sell, hold or otherwise transact in any security, and nothing published here should be relied on when making an investment decision.

Advisory services

Any consulting, speaking or advisory engagement is agreed separately and in writing. Nothing on this site is an offer capable of acceptance, and no engagement exists until its terms have been agreed in writing.

Accuracy and liability

Reasonable care goes into the research and writing on this site, and the Editorial and Corrections Policy sets out how errors are handled. The content is nonetheless provided as is, without any warranty that it is complete, accurate or current. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the operator accepts no liability for loss or damage arising from reliance on anything published here. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

Interpretations, forecasts and assessments of what a payment scheme, regulator, company or other organisation has done or may do next are the author’s honestly held opinions, based on the sources and information available at the date of publication. They are not representations of the intentions of the organisations discussed. Information may change after publication, and material corrections and updates are recorded under that policy.

Independence of this site

This site is created and maintained independently, in a personal capacity, outside the author’s employment duties. Professional experience informs the author’s perspective, but factual claims concerning third parties are based on publicly available sources identified in the relevant article. Editorial content is not written on behalf of, reviewed or approved by, or attributable to Global Payments, Worldpay, or any other current or former employer, client or affiliated organisation, and it does not use confidential, proprietary or otherwise non-public information obtained through those relationships. Any material employment, client, investment or other interest relevant to an article is disclosed with that article.

Third-party links

Articles link to external sources, including rulebooks, regulatory publications and press coverage. Those sites are outside the operator’s control, and linking to them does not endorse their content or make the operator responsible for it.

Governing law

These terms, and any dispute arising out of or in connection with them or with the use of this site, are governed by the laws of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.