Ever wondered what a real mobile message to Orange, Vodafone, or O2 looks like under the hood?

0000003F00000004000000000000000100010153656E64657249440001013338

336313237363530350000000100000000000D48656C6C6F20416E6472697921

This line is what actually travels over the wire when you integrate with mobile operators using SMPP (Short Message Peer-to-Peer protocol). Implementing SMPP in Java was one of the first challenging yet exciting tasks we tackled while building a new platform for Echovox, more than 12 years ago. It's a hidden engine behind every "ping" and "buzz" you get from businesses worldwide. Back then, mastering SMPP felt like unlocking a secret language of the telecom world — and it still powers the mobile messaging ecosystem today.

While many assume banks don’t offer public APIs, they actually do — even in Switzerland.

In our BNPL product for the Swiss market, Paidle, we faced a key challenge:
tracking incoming customer payments in real time.

To solve this, we integrated with Credit Suisse using a CAMT (Cash Management) XML-based format - part of the ISO 20022 standard widely used for payment reconciliation.

Using Credit Suisse’s CAMT API, we now receive daily updates on received payments, allowing for:

• Precise matching against outstanding invoices
• Fully automated reconciliation
• Real-time visibility into financial flows

But Here’s the Catch: Swiss Banks Are Conservative

Getting integration approval isn’t easy:

• Strict security, compliance, and infrastructure requirements
• Long, complex approval and documentation processes
• Direct collaboration with bank representatives is often necessary

Despite the friction, we now have a real-time, automated payment tracking pipeline - a critical foundation for scaling any fintech solution in Europe.