Since 2009, merchants have been able to integrate PayPal into their checkout process. Computop was the first PSP in Germany to provide a connection. In the meantime, PayPal has become the most popular payment method in German e-commerce1, even overtaking payment upon invoice. The new Orders V2 interface enables the integration of completely new functions. Today, two technology experts discuss the past and future of an extraordinary partnership in the Payment Insights blog.
Payment Insights: Carsten and Norman, please introduce yourselves briefly to our readers.

Carsten Bönsel: ‘My role at PayPal is to provide technical support to our partners, and in this role I have been working with Computop for almost four years.’
Norman Krieghoff: ’I am CTO at Computop, have been with the company since 2004 and am responsible for software development and IT administration.’
PI: Norman, do you still remember the start of the collaboration between PayPal and Computop? It all started in 2009.

NK: ‘That’s right, we’ve been working with PayPal for 15 years. But we had our first contact three years before that. Someone from PayPal sent me the technical documentation at the time, and that led to the first steps together.’
CB: ‘Yes, Computop was actually one of my first projects when I joined the company. Right from the start, I thought it was great how we work together as partners and how direct and familiar the contact is between those involved. I heard that at the beginning everyone was still on formal terms, but now we are all on first-name terms.
In software development, you always have to think about how to abstract topics, and there are a lot of possibilities. So, it was funny and exciting at the same time that we had structured the source code quite similarly in the early days. I think our companies have a similar feel for software architecture.’
NK: ‘So that was a lot of fun, you almost forgot you were at work. When you can develop a good product together and enjoying the cause, that’s great. And we’ve always appreciated your constructive comments, so that in the end we have a perfect product for our customers.
I remember that at the beginning of 2009, we carried out a handful of transactions a day. Now we process over 100,000 payment transactions every day. Many more detailed transactions such as credits, cancellations and bookings take place in the background, so we process well over a quarter of a million transactions a day with you.’
CB: ‘But you certainly didn’t go live with all the features from the start when you developed the first integration in 2009, did you?’
NK: ’With the Classic interface at the time, we initially only implemented sales transactions, i.e. authorisation and capture in one step. Then came the separation of authorisation and capture, with credits of course included immediately. And the logical goal was to integrate the entire Classic API portfolio. The recurring functions were also very exciting because we have something similar for credit cards. Seeing how it works for PayPal, an e-wallet, was interesting but also challenging.’
PI: If we jump from the past to the present, the current interface, Orders V2, is now the focus. What more can it do and how did you get there together?

CB: ‘I think the challenge with Orders V2 was that you couldn’t take a modular approach but had to offer at least the same scope that was available in the Classic API at the start in order to achieve feature parity.’
NK: ’In addition, Orders V2 offers a lot of new functions through PayPal, and of course these are added to the new interface first.’
CB: ‘Yes, it is definitely planned to only add new features to the latest integration and API. That’s why it’s important that merchants upgrade to the Orders V2 integration as soon as possible so that their PayPal setup is future-proof.’
PI: How do you work together on the integration of a new merchant interface?
NK: ‘When PayPal develops new features, our partner management team reports it and it goes through our product development process. If there is a business case for our merchants we implement it. In the case of Orders V2, to tell you the truth, we even shortened the process. The requirement had not yet been confirmed, but I started programming the interface already.’
CB: ‘We pay attention to what your very individual requirements as a payment service provider are. And then the solution document is written based on your technological setup.’
NK: ‘But that’s not the only link between our two companies. Our Merchant Service and our Partner Management are also in regular contact with PayPal. And that’s also a huge advantage for the merchant: they don’t see Computop and PayPal as two separate companies, but rather as one, and of course they benefit from these joined forces.’
CB: ‘Absolutely! We have set up a specific monitoring system for the requests that come in through Computop. We then discuss them in a weekly meeting and can improve minor details so that everything runs really smoothly.’
NK: ’What I also like is that we can offer truly customised solutions thanks to all the coordination in the various departments. If I take the marketplace as an example: there are different ways to integrate it. You create the solution documents for us, and we see which merchant is best suited for which integration approach. And then we implement it exactly that way – this is a contribution to the customised payment that distinguishes us in the market.’
PI: Can you go into a little more detail about the advantages of the new Orders V2 interface?
NK: ‘We want to provide our merchants with the latest technology, the latest features and, of course, state-of-the-art implementation. The Orders V2 is based on REST APIs, and not only that: the connection to Computer Paygate is also a REST interface for interacting with web services between client and server – this is de facto the industry standard today.
CB: ‘From a merchant perspective, one of the main advantages of the new Orders V2 is that we provide the PayPal button in different layouts if required. This means that merchants can easily integrate the PayPal button into their shop in the design of their choice; it’s quick and automatically provides the right UX. As part of the button, we have included advanced fraud detection to help merchants handle the risk of fraudulent purchases. On the server side, Computop also has additional fraud prevention mechanisms that did not previously exist. And we now also support marketplaces.
Another advantage is the so-called PayPal ‘Mini Browser’, where the checkout flow opens in the same browser window so that you don’t have to leave the merchant’s site to complete the payment with PayPal.
With Orders V2, we also offer the PayPal ‘Pay Later’ options², which are offered in seven markets, including Germany. For this, too, we are providing separate buttons that merchants can use with the new integration. Merchants operating in the USA may also be interested in Venmo as an additional payment method, which we offer with the new Orders V2.
It’s definitely worth upgrading to the new API. New features are only provided for the new Orders V2, making it future-proof.’
PI: What about the implementation for the trader? Will it be complicated?
CB: ‘The main concern for a merchant with a new technology is always that it causes expenses that have to be paid and mapped within the company. I’m really glad that you did such a good job and that the new integration is close to the existing one, so that in principle you have to change very little.’
NK: ‘We have various options for a merchant to switch to the new interface. We offer plugins, i.e. shop modules, which the merchant only needs to replace to be on the new interface. We also offer a code library that the merchant can easily integrate. They receive a ready-made code that they can integrate into their website so that the PayPal Smart Button appears there directly.
But we can also configure a switch in the background and then simulate the classic flows, so to speak – we call this silent migration. This means that merchants don’t have to do anything. However, we do recommend making minor adjustments to take advantage of new features such as the smart button or in-context checkout. The upgrade to the modern API is going well overall, with more than a third of our merchants already having done it.’
PI: Let’s look a little further into the future: What’s next for the PayPal connection?
NK: ‘We won’t be standing still with the Orders V2 and its features. We have just completed the JavaScript for the Smart Button to simplify integration for the merchant. And I’ve also heard that you’re already distributing new solution documents again.’
CB: ‘Yes, even after 15 years, there is still room for optimisation and faster processes. But it’s true: we are constantly working on new solutions and products. We are currently working on the package tracking integration. Customers can track their purchases to their doorsteps in real time. It also helps merchants minimize time spent dealing with delivery inquiries and reduce the number of “items not received” disputes. If customers say they haven’t received their product, we can use this information to better assess whether or not their complaint is legitimate. In most cases, this significantly simplifies the process for merchants.
Another point we are addressing together is vaulting. Vaulting is our new product for storing payment methods and thus being able to provide a quick and easy checkout experience, also to set up recurring payments. And that will replace the existing Billing Agreements integration in the medium term.’
NK: ‘I’m definitely looking forward to the next 15 years with you. We know our merchants, and they will continue to be keen to integrate PayPal as the most popular payment method in Germany.’
CB: ‘And the work doesn’t stop at further streamlining payment processes. I hope that we can continue to maintain our partnership so well. And that you continue to maintain such a strong market position in Germany as a PSP and that we can be successful together.’
PI: Thanks, Carsten and Norman, for this exciting exchange from the tech corner!
Learn more about the PayPal-V2-API
Download JavaScript SDK for PayPal via Computop
vgl. 1https://www.ehi.org/presse/paypal-beliebteste-zahlungsart-im-onlinehandel/#:~:text=Beim%20Online-Shopping
Header photo f.l.t.r..: Norman Krieghoff, Chief Technical Officer, Computop; Berit Willenbockel, Teamhead Partner Management, Computop; Till Egelhof, Senior Partner Growth Manager, PayPal; Julia Thomauske, Partnership Relation Manager, Computop; Henning Brandt, Chief Communication Officer, Computop; Christina Klug, Partner Marketing Manger Europe, PayPal; Carsten Bönsel, Partner Technical Account Manager, PayPal