Visa’s objective was to showcase its online payment request technology. Scotiabank needed a feature for billers to request payments, enroll in the RFP system, and manage their payers, all within the Scotiabank design system and brand guidelines.
By designing a user-friendly RFP flow grounded in the insights mentioned above, we positioned Scotiabank to meet emerging consumer expectations and strengthen small business adoption—ultimately supporting Visa’s mission to demonstrate the value of its payment technology to a major financial institution.
Visa’s Payment Rails. Leveraged Visa’s existing RFP infrastructure for secure digital payment requests.
Scotiabank’s Design System. Ensured every design element, colour, and component adhered to the bank’s brand guidelines.
Third-Party Competitor Insights. Drew from comparative research with Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, and Intuit to shape user flows.
Research & Collaboration Tools. Utilised Miro for workshop facilitation and documentation, along with Figma design/prototyping software.
Lead Product Designer (Me) – responsible for the initial research, user flows, UX/UI design, prototyping.
Scotiabank Stakeholders. Product Owner, Brand/Design gatekeeper.
Visa Leadership. My design manager and Product Owner representing RFP unit.
Software Engineer. Representing the RFP unit’s tech stack and advising on the feasibility of proposed solutions.
UX Researcher. Supported discovery and insights usage.
Project Manager. Oversaw timelines, resource allocation, and approvals.
This setup demanded active communication across corporate boundaries—ensuring Visa’s RFP technology could work hand-in-hand with Scotiabank’s internal systems and brand standards.
Aligning Multiple Providers
Visa needed the solution to reflect its RFP capabilities (API integrations, transaction flows).
Scotiabank required compliance with their design system and secure environment.
Meeting Dual Persona Needs
Billers (business owners or representatives) who enroll customers, and create payment requests.
Payers (end customers) who receive and fulfill payment requests.
Stakeholder Workshops. Conducted collaborative sessions with Scotiabank to clarify user personas, brand constraints, and business objectives.
Competitor & Benchmark Analysis. Analysed digital payment products from Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, and Intuit—identifying best practices in request flows, invoice management, and user onboarding.
Biller Enrolment Flow. Where and how a small business owner registers to use the RFP service.
Request Payment Flow. Steps to create, send, and track payment requests within Scotiabank’s interface.
Customer Management. Adding/editing payer info, referencing prior transactions.
Cross-Partner Touchpoints. Ensured that the design accounted for Visa’s RFP rails and API-driven constraints (e.g., transaction statuses, error messaging).
Wireframing. Mapped out key screens and decision points in low fidelity to validate concept alignment with stakeholders (Visa + Scotiabank).
Hi-Fi & Clickable Prototypes. Final designs adhering to Scotiabank’s color palette, typography, component library, and seamless integration with Visa’s RFP logic.
Design Collaboration. Daily check-ins with the Visa design manager for guidance and quick iteration. Frequent updates to Scotiabank’s product owners to ensure brand compliance and gather feedback.
Delivered annotated hi-fi designs and prototypes for Scotiabank’s development team, clarifying edge cases (error states, validations).
I analysed competitors (Intuit, Xero, Sage, QuickBooks) to understand common user flows for invoice creation, payment requests, and customer management.
I synthesised findings in Miro, then drafted user flows based on real-world usage patterns.
Successfully integrated Visa’s secure RFP infrastructure into Scotiabank’s existing digital ecosystem.
Provided a cohesive user experience while respecting two distinct corporate brands and design philosophies.
Addressed the unique needs of billers (enrolment, user management) and payers (simple payment completion).
Created consistent user flows that mirrored competitor best practices, building on known mental models.
Maintained alignment with Visa, Scotiabank, and external reference points (e.g., competitor research).
Demonstrated the feasibility of scaling Visa’s RFP solution to other banking partners.
Industry Context. Payments Canada reports that businesses using digital invoicing solutions can reduce payment delays by up to 50%. Canadian Bankers Association data shows 76% of Canadians primarily use digital channels for day-to-day banking.
Potential Value. By providing a built-in RFP solution, Scotiabank could tap into the growing digital payment preference and strengthen relationships with small business customers.
Actual usage metrics or final ROI data were not available by the time my contract ended.
I evolved user-flows into detailed UI designs consistent with Scotiabank’s design system. Included variations for error states, validation, and secondary user actions.
I developed polished designs in alignment with Scotiabank’s branding and UI pattern library, covering all core user flows and edge cases.
Navigating Visa’s payment rails and Scotiabank’s brand ecosystem required clear communication, technical understanding, and the ability to unify multiple stakeholder needs.
Benchmarking competing fintech products offered crucial insights into user expectations, allowing for solutions that felt both familiar and brand-aligned.
Daily syncs with the Visa design manager and weekly reviews with Scotiabank reduced misalignment and last-minute surprises.
Tying designs to broader fintech trends (e.g., e-invoicing adoption, digital banking growth in Canada) provided a strong business case for a robust Request for Payment feature.
I took on a leadership role in orchestrating multiple partners (Visa & Scotiabank) and software integrations (design systems, payment APIs).
I delivered a user-friendly, brand-consistent solution that tied directly into a major enterprise’s existing digital banking framework.
I bridged corporate boundaries, meeting stringent brand guidelines, and aligning technology from different organisations into one cohesive product.
