You're a PM for a payment gateway with a $10 million extra budget for the next 1-1.5 years. Where would you invest it?

With a $10 million budget over 1-1.5 years for a payment gateway, I would prioritize investments in three key areas:

1. Core Infrastructure Enhancement ($4M): The foundation of our service needs to be robust. This includes significant investment in platform scalability to handle peak demand and prevent capacity issues.
2. Real-Time Payments Expansion ($2.5M): Given the growing demand, I'd allocate funds to develop and integrate instant settlement capabilities, specifically focusing on leveraging networks like FedNow and RTP to offer faster transaction processing.
3. Security & Compliance Upgrades ($2M): As transaction volumes grow, so do security risks. Investing in advanced fraud detection, enhanced data encryption, and ensuring compliance with evolving regulatory standards is critical for trust and long-term viability.
4. Developer Experience & API Improvements ($1.5M): To drive adoption and retention, we need to make it easier for merchants and partners to integrate with our gateway. This includes improving API documentation, SDKs, and developer tooling.