MRG Drove Payments Growth Through Partnership with Endurance (Now Newfold Digital)
MRG Drove Payments Growth Through Partnership with Endurance (Now Newfold Digital)
MRG helped Endurance (now Newfold Digital) launch a zero-capex, revenue-share payments program with iPayment/Paysafe, adding $10M+ in high-margin run-rate revenue, lifting EBITDA, and aligning private-equity sponsors with durable, KPI-driven growth.
Zero-Capex Payments Monetization Engine
SMB Subscribers Turned Into Merchants
$10M+ Revenue Without New Spend
The Challenge
Endurance International (later Newfold Digital) had millions of SMB hosting customers, but no scalable payments infrastructure to monetize them. Private equity sponsors needed $10M+ in new revenue to hit IRR targets, but refused to deploy new capex or take on execution risk.
MRG’s Solution
MRG brokered a zero-capex revenue-share with iPayment, embedding merchant onboarding into the hosting flow and converting static subscribers into active transacting merchants.
What MRG did
Structured a zero-capex, revenue-share program with iPayment (later Paysafe), aligning underwriting, residual splits, and portfolio ownership to protect downside.
Mapped a 30/60/90/180/365-day KPI timeline that met sponsor reporting needs (attach-rate, activation, average ticket, churn, take-rate, residuals). Weekly roll-ups. Monthly QBRs.
Embedded payments into the hosting funnel (Bluehost/HostGator et al.) with intent-based prompts and a merchant-onboarding path tuned for SMB. (Context: Endurance’s scale and SMB focus made this the natural cross-sell.)
Why Paysafe/iPayment
Scale & credibility: iPayment served ~137,000+ merchants and processed ~$28B annually before the 2018 acquisition by Paysafe. That scale reduced execution risk and improved residual quality.
Consolidation tailwind: Paysafe’s acquisition vaulted it into a top-5 U.S. non-bank acquirer, ensuring durable processor support for Newfold’s SMB base.
Results (what we aimed for and why it worked)
New revenue run-rate: The model targeted $10M+ annualized via conservative attach rates and residuals—without upfront spend.
EBITDA lift: Residuals flowed with minimal COGS, expanding margins and supporting future recapitalization.
Sponsor alignment: KPI cadence matched sponsor expectations; GS/Warburg visibility improved confidence in IRR delivery.
By the numbers
Endurance scale & growth context: S-1 shows rapid revenue expansion into 2012–2013, underscoring the distribution base payments could monetize.
Ownership/sponsor context: Endurance was owned by Warburg Pincus and GS Capital Partners (Goldman Sachs PE) before its 2013 IPO and later sale to Clearlake (forming Newfold Digital with Web.com in 2021).
Processor scale: iPayment’s size and Paysafe’s 2018 deal (rebrand completed the same year) validate partner capability and stability.
In 2012–2013, Endurance International was big—but smaller than GoDaddy: ~3.4M subscribers and approximately 25k net new/month) and 9M+ domains under management; its e-commerce then was basic carts plus payments tools inside the hosting stack. After MRG’s 2012 payments push, Endurance’s SMB base gained integrated processing via iPayment (later Paysafe)—a partner that by 2017–2018 handled ~137k merchants and $25–$28B in volume—turning more hosted “sites” into transacting merchants, improving churn, increasing ARPU and lifting residual EBITDA.
By the numbers
Endurance scale & growth context: S-1 shows rapid revenue expansion into 2012–2013, underscoring the distribution base payments could monetize.
Ownership/sponsor context: Endurance was owned by Warburg Pincus and GS Capital Partners (Goldman Sachs PE) before its 2013 IPO and later sale to Clearlake (forming Newfold Digital with Web.com in 2021).
Processor scale: iPayment’s size and Paysafe’s 2018 deal (rebrand completed the same year) validate partner capability and stability.
In 2012–2013, Endurance International was big—but smaller than GoDaddy: ~3.4M subscribers and approximately 25k net new/month) and 9M+ domains under management; its e-commerce then was basic carts plus payments tools inside the hosting stack. After MRG’s 2012 payments push, Endurance’s SMB base gained integrated processing via iPayment (later Paysafe)—a partner that by 2017–2018 handled ~137k merchants and $25–$28B in volume—turning more hosted “sites” into transacting merchants, improving churn, increasing ARPU and lifting residual EBITDA.
CASE-STUDIES
See our partnership success stories
Every partnership tells a story. From Microsoft to Deluxe, Endurance, and beyond, Merchant Resource Group has helped leading companies unlock new revenue, scale faster, and capture greater enterprise value. Explore how our strategies, playbooks, and precision execution have turned complex challenges into measurable results across payments, and ecommerce.
The Challenge
Endurance International (later Newfold Digital) had millions of SMB hosting customers, but no scalable payments infrastructure to monetize them. Private equity sponsors needed $10M+ in new revenue to hit IRR targets, but refused to deploy new capex or take on execution risk.
MRG’s Solution
MRG brokered a zero-capex revenue-share with iPayment, embedding merchant onboarding into the hosting flow and converting static subscribers into active transacting merchants.
What MRG did
Structured a zero-capex, revenue-share program with iPayment (later Paysafe), aligning underwriting, residual splits, and portfolio ownership to protect downside.
Mapped a 30/60/90/180/365-day KPI timeline that met sponsor reporting needs (attach-rate, activation, average ticket, churn, take-rate, residuals). Weekly roll-ups. Monthly QBRs.
Embedded payments into the hosting funnel (Bluehost/HostGator et al.) with intent-based prompts and a merchant-onboarding path tuned for SMB. (Context: Endurance’s scale and SMB focus made this the natural cross-sell.)
Why Paysafe/iPayment
Scale & credibility: iPayment served ~137,000+ merchants and processed ~$28B annually before the 2018 acquisition by Paysafe. That scale reduced execution risk and improved residual quality.
Consolidation tailwind: Paysafe’s acquisition vaulted it into a top-5 U.S. non-bank acquirer, ensuring durable processor support for Newfold’s SMB base.
Results (what we aimed for and why it worked)
New revenue run-rate: The model targeted $10M+ annualized via conservative attach rates and residuals—without upfront spend.
EBITDA lift: Residuals flowed with minimal COGS, expanding margins and supporting future recapitalization.
Sponsor alignment: KPI cadence matched sponsor expectations; GS/Warburg visibility improved confidence in IRR delivery.
By the numbers
Endurance scale & growth context: S-1 shows rapid revenue expansion into 2012–2013, underscoring the distribution base payments could monetize.
Ownership/sponsor context: Endurance was owned by Warburg Pincus and GS Capital Partners (Goldman Sachs PE) before its 2013 IPO and later sale to Clearlake (forming Newfold Digital with Web.com in 2021).
Processor scale: iPayment’s size and Paysafe’s 2018 deal (rebrand completed the same year) validate partner capability and stability.
In 2012–2013, Endurance International was big—but smaller than GoDaddy: ~3.4M subscribers and approximately 25k net new/month) and 9M+ domains under management; its e-commerce then was basic carts plus payments tools inside the hosting stack. After MRG’s 2012 payments push, Endurance’s SMB base gained integrated processing via iPayment (later Paysafe)—a partner that by 2017–2018 handled ~137k merchants and $25–$28B in volume—turning more hosted “sites” into transacting merchants, improving churn, increasing ARPU and lifting residual EBITDA.
By the numbers
Endurance scale & growth context: S-1 shows rapid revenue expansion into 2012–2013, underscoring the distribution base payments could monetize.
Ownership/sponsor context: Endurance was owned by Warburg Pincus and GS Capital Partners (Goldman Sachs PE) before its 2013 IPO and later sale to Clearlake (forming Newfold Digital with Web.com in 2021).
Processor scale: iPayment’s size and Paysafe’s 2018 deal (rebrand completed the same year) validate partner capability and stability.
In 2012–2013, Endurance International was big—but smaller than GoDaddy: ~3.4M subscribers and approximately 25k net new/month) and 9M+ domains under management; its e-commerce then was basic carts plus payments tools inside the hosting stack. After MRG’s 2012 payments push, Endurance’s SMB base gained integrated processing via iPayment (later Paysafe)—a partner that by 2017–2018 handled ~137k merchants and $25–$28B in volume—turning more hosted “sites” into transacting merchants, improving churn, increasing ARPU and lifting residual EBITDA.
CASE-STUDIES
See our partnership success stories
Every partnership tells a story. From Microsoft to Deluxe, Endurance, and beyond, Merchant Resource Group has helped leading companies unlock new revenue, scale faster, and capture greater enterprise value. Explore how our strategies, playbooks, and precision execution have turned complex challenges into measurable results across payments, and ecommerce.
Our Awesome Journey
Our Awesome Journey
Our Story
To date, we have sold over 50,000 merchant accounts and worked with some of the most credible brands.
1998
Founded on Microsoft Roots, Built for Small Business
Spawned from Peter's days at Microsoft, Merchant Resource Group (MRG) was founded on the simple principle that small businesses should be able to leverage tech without having to learn it.
1998
Founded on Microsoft Roots, Built for Small Business
Spawned from Peter's days at Microsoft, Merchant Resource Group (MRG) was founded on the simple principle that small businesses should be able to leverage tech without having to learn it.
1998
Co-Founder, Cardservice NetCommerce (Acquired 2002)
Co-Founded Cardservice international NetCommerce, acquired by iPayment in 2002.
1998
Co-Founder, Cardservice NetCommerce (Acquired 2002)
Co-Founded Cardservice international NetCommerce, acquired by iPayment in 2002.
1999
Co-Founder, AmeriMerchant (Acquired by Capify, 2003)
Co-Founded AmeriMerchant, the larget cash adcancec payments company lending over $1B to small business since its inception. Acquired by Capify in 2003.
1999
Co-Founder, AmeriMerchant (Acquired by Capify, 2003)
Co-Founded AmeriMerchant, the larget cash adcancec payments company lending over $1B to small business since its inception. Acquired by Capify in 2003.
2004
Founder, InternetMerchant.com (Acquired by PowerPay/EVO, 2009)
Founded InternetMerchant.com, acquired by PowerPay/EVO in 2009
2004
Founder, InternetMerchant.com (Acquired by PowerPay/EVO, 2009)
Founded InternetMerchant.com, acquired by PowerPay/EVO in 2009
2007
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
2007
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
2018
Joint Venture with Deluxe Corporation
Joint venture with Deluxe Corporation building a $10M+ book of business within 2 years
2018
Joint Venture with Deluxe Corporation
Joint venture with Deluxe Corporation building a $10M+ book of business within 2 years
2020
MRG Launches Persistent.ID
MRG acquires PersonLink and launches Persistent.ID to address digital marketing that our merchants need to succeed, increasing sales and average ticket per sale with email marketing.
2020
MRG Launches Persistent.ID
MRG acquires PersonLink and launches Persistent.ID to address digital marketing that our merchants need to succeed, increasing sales and average ticket per sale with email marketing.
2021
MRG Invests in Convesio & Klickly
MRG strategically invested in Convesio and Klickly to fuel a dynamic, high-performing martech ecosystem with advanced auto-scaling infrastructure and AI-driven commerce solutions
2021
MRG Invests in Convesio & Klickly
MRG strategically invested in Convesio and Klickly to fuel a dynamic, high-performing martech ecosystem with advanced auto-scaling infrastructure and AI-driven commerce solutions
2024
Developed & Optimizing IntentWave Platform
Developed and actively optimizing Intentwave, our all-in-one SaaS MarTech platform to integrate full-funnel sales and marketing tools. We provide top-tier automation, real-time insights, and a revenue-driven ecosystem, driving conversions and scaling with precision.
2024
Developed & Optimizing IntentWave Platform
Developed and actively optimizing Intentwave, our all-in-one SaaS MarTech platform to integrate full-funnel sales and marketing tools. We provide top-tier automation, real-time insights, and a revenue-driven ecosystem, driving conversions and scaling with precision.
Our Awesome Journey
Our Story
To date, we have sold over 50,000 merchant accounts and worked with some of the most credible brands.
1998
Founded on Microsoft Roots, Built for Small Business
Spawned from Peter's days at Microsoft, Merchant Resource Group (MRG) was founded on the simple principle that small businesses should be able to leverage tech without having to learn it.
1998
Co-Founder, Cardservice NetCommerce (Acquired 2002)
Co-Founded Cardservice international NetCommerce, acquired by iPayment in 2002.
1999
Co-Founder, AmeriMerchant (Acquired by Capify, 2003)
Co-Founded AmeriMerchant, the larget cash adcancec payments company lending over $1B to small business since its inception. Acquired by Capify in 2003.
2004
Founder, InternetMerchant.com (Acquired by PowerPay/EVO, 2009)
Founded InternetMerchant.com, acquired by PowerPay/EVO in 2009
2007
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
Founded iPayment USA, acquired by PaySafe
2018
Joint Venture with Deluxe Corporation
Joint venture with Deluxe Corporation building a $10M+ book of business within 2 years
2020
MRG Launches Persistent.ID
MRG acquires PersonLink and launches Persistent.ID to address digital marketing that our merchants need to succeed, increasing sales and average ticket per sale with email marketing.
2021
MRG Invests in Convesio & Klickly
MRG strategically invested in Convesio and Klickly to fuel a dynamic, high-performing martech ecosystem with advanced auto-scaling infrastructure and AI-driven commerce solutions
2024
Developed & Optimizing IntentWave Platform
Developed and actively optimizing Intentwave, our all-in-one SaaS MarTech platform to integrate full-funnel sales and marketing tools. We provide top-tier automation, real-time insights, and a revenue-driven ecosystem, driving conversions and scaling with precision.