A single metric for payment performance. Two variables that drive it. The discipline that turns payment operations into a measurable source of financial return.
U.S. enterprises process approximately $28.9 trillion in B2B payments annually. Research consistently shows typical organizations realize 0.25% to 0.50% economic return on that activity. Optimized organizations realize 1.0% to 1.5%. The gap, roughly 1% of addressable spend, represents approximately $289 billion in unrealized value every year.
That value disappears because no one owns the economic outcome of payment decisions. Treasury optimizes cash. AP optimizes process. Procurement optimizes contracts. The financial return of the payment itself falls between all three.
Payment Yield is the single metric that captures the economic performance of an organization's payment operations. It answers one question: For every dollar we pay to suppliers, how much economic value do we capture?
The blended rate of return across all yield-generating payment methods. This includes card rebates (1.0%–2.5%), early payment discounts, dynamic discounting returns, and float value. CR measures the quality of your payment economics: how well you monetize the spend you do optimize.
The percentage of addressable spend where suppliers actually accept your preferred payment methods. The typical organization has 15%–25% SA, meaning 75%–85% of addressable spend generates zero yield. SA measures the reach of your payment economics.
The relationship is multiplicative, not additive. A company with excellent rebate rates (2.0% CR) but low supplier adoption (15% SA) earns a Payment Yield of just 0.30%. A company with moderate rates (1.5% CR) but strong adoption (50% SA) earns 0.75%, producing 2.5x more value with a lower rate. The multiplier effect is where the insight lives.
| Performance Level | Payment Yield | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
| Underperforming | Below 0.25% | No systematic approach |
| Average | 0.25% – 0.50% | Some card program, limited optimization |
| Above Average | 0.50% – 0.75% | Active optimization, partial supplier acceptance |
| High Performing | 0.75% – 1.00% | Dedicated focus, strong supplier acceptance |
| Best-in-Class | Above 1.00% | Continuous optimization, SA above 55% |
Every discipline creates a practitioner. Portfolio theory created portfolio managers. Revenue operations created RevOps leaders. Payment Economics creates the Payment Economics Practitioner: a finance professional who owns the economic return of an organization's payment operations.
The role sits at the intersection of AP, Treasury, and Procurement, focused on measuring Payment Yield, optimizing both variables, and reporting results to leadership in financial impact terms. The Payment Portfolio Manager manages payment methods as a portfolio, allocating volume across methods to maximize net economic contribution.
The Payment Economics Journal is where the discipline develops in public. Published weekly, each issue builds on the last, from the foundational $289 billion gap (Issue 1) through Payment Yield mechanics, supplier dynamics, organizational architecture, and advanced method economics. 15 issues and growing.
Read the journal for applied analysis. Get the book for the complete framework. Earn the credential to verify your fluency.