Amaryllis Was Founded on Demand and a Good Idea

 

Companies are like superheroes in that they all have an origin story, explaining how they started and began to build something meaningful. In this episode of the Software and Technology Podcast, host Tyler Kern sat down with Amaryllis Payment Solutions co-founders Ori Hay and Adi Ekshtain. They discuss their origin story and how the two recognized the demand for third-party aggregators in payment services that would revolutionize the industry.

Before co-founding Amaryllis with Ekshtain, Hay spent more than a decade working in credit card processing services and saw the coming wave of e-commerce transactions. “I recognized that this is where things are going to go,” he said.

When Ekshtain wanted to create a third-party payment processing partner for e-commerce, he turned to Hay, a noted developer, patent holder, and expert in FinTech.

“I thought it was a very smart idea and it came at the right time,” Ekshtain said.

The two partnered to build a dot net software for payments, the first commercially-viable mobile face-to-face payment solution.

“Back then with Microsoft, there was nothing to build real infrastructure on,” Hay said. “Since Adi is the technology guy, he came to me saying there’s a new thing called dot net.”

Ekshtain continued, “We struck a partnership with the Microsoft technology center. Together with them, we built the first-ever payment gateway built on Microsoft dot net technology. That proved to us we could build an economically-viable software, and it allowed Microsoft to have a case study of a financial system that is mission-critical.”

In this episode, Ekshtain and Hay also discussed the significance of the platform’s flexibility, the uniqueness of the payment solution, and how competition has followed their lead.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Software & Electronics Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!
Twitter – @TechMKSL
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Energy billing
Nightmare on Revenue Street: Energy Billing Edition
February 3, 2026

Energy billing is one of those things most people only think about when something goes wrong—an unusually high charge, a missing bill, a surprise shutoff notice, or a rate plan that suddenly doesn’t make sense. With smart meters, more complex pricing options, and different rules in regulated vs. deregulated markets, even a small breakdown…

Read More
career coaching
Work-Based Learning & Career Coaching with Strada Education: Closing the Gap Between Education and Opportunity
February 2, 2026

As higher education faces mounting pressure to demonstrate clear career outcomes, institutions are rethinking how learning connects to work and the role of career coaching in that process. Employers continue to report skills gaps, students are questioning the return on investment of a degree, and states are demanding stronger alignment between postsecondary education and…

Read More
cities
Craftsmanship and the Soul of Cities with Top Real Estate Developer Mike Ablon
February 2, 2026

More than half the world already lives in cities—and the UN projects that share will rise to 68% by 2050, adding roughly 2.5 billion more people to urban areas. At the same time, the “experience economy” has reshaped what people value in places: not just what a city has, but how it feels to…

Read More
client engagement
When Client Engagement Becomes True Partnership
February 1, 2026

CG Infinity’s Salesforce Practice is built on deep, day-to-day engagement with the organizations it serves. Rather than operating as an external vendor, the team embeds itself with clients—working closely, consistently, and collaboratively—so decisions are informed by real context, trust, and shared accountability. This approach ensures Salesforce solutions are shaped not just by requirements, but…

Read More