Lumanu and Visa have begun working together on a cross-border payments initiative aimed at addressing long-standing delays in creator compensation.
The arrangement incorporates Visa Direct into Lumanu’s payment infrastructure, extending the platform’s ability to move funds to creators and contractors in more than 195 jurisdictions. According to the companies, the integration is intended to streamline compliance, tax processes, and spending oversight for brands and agencies while enabling quicker disbursements to individual recipients.
The collaboration follows growing scrutiny of how creator payments are handled within the marketing sector. An investigation by Campaign recently reported that most surveyed creators have at some point faced late payments, in many cases waiting several months due to legacy approval chains and ‘pay when paid’ practices. Agencies, which frequently sit between brands and talent, have described bearing the operational and reputational pressure when these delays occur.
Addressing structural bottlenecks in creator compensation
Representatives from Lumanu said the platform’s model allows brands to pre-fund a dedicated account through which Lumanu manages vendor onboarding, compliance checks, and outgoing payments. With Visa Direct incorporated, the company can now send cross-border payouts directly to local bank accounts, an approach designed to reduce intermediary banking steps and cut down on settlement times.
Officials from Visa noted that the company sees creators and small businesses as an expanding segment of global commerce and said the partnership reflects efforts to improve reliability and transparency in this area. Industry publications, including Digiday, have described the move as an expected expansion of Visa’s involvement in creator-economy infrastructure.
Lumanu reports that its system has processed more than USD 1.5 billion in payments to over 100,000 creators and contractors for brands such as Warner Music Group, PepsiCo, WPP, and Keurig Dr Pepper. Agencies using the platform have cited fewer administrative hurdles and greater clarity around reconciliations, according to Lumanu.
