We live in a globalized world, where expanding overseas isconsidered the new normal for ambitious companies. Indeed, since2010, North American businesses' mergers with and acquisitions ofEuropean organizations have totaled 3,979 transactions, worth a sumof US$506 billion, according to Dealogic.

For multi-billion-dollar institutions, growth by internationalmerger or acquisition is a relatively simple process. Many of theFortune 500 have at their disposal shared service centers for anassortment of financial activities, so the operational integrationof a new market into the existing payments management structure isrelatively straightforward. However, cross-border payment issuesoften create challenges for midsize companies.

Despite the introduction of the Single European Payments Area (SEPA), North American mid-caporganizations taking advantage of growth opportunities in Eastern,Central, or Western Europe face complex and diverse paymentconsiderations. Stumbling blocks in creating a trans-Atlanticfootprint can arise from the environment's alien regulations,multiple tax jurisdictions, conflicting capital management rules,and varying degrees of political stability within and outside ofthe Eurozone—not to mention the more obvious challenges of varyingtime zones, languages, and currency risks.