Fixing the broken system behind creator payments

Despite the creator economy booming past $250 billion, the underlying payment systems haven’t caught up. A recent investigation by Campaign found that up to 87% of surveyed creators have been paid late or faced payment issues, often waiting 60–180 days for money they’ve already earned. The report traced this to outdated enterprise payment systems, multiple layers of approvals, and “pay when paid” policies that push financial risk down the chain.

“Marketing moves fast, but Finance and Procurement has to ensure every dollar is tracked and every vendor is compliant,” said Tony Tran, CEO of Lumanu. “That tension creates friction, frustration, and risk. Lumanu bridges that gap so marketers can work with who they want, when they want, while Finance keeps full control over compliance, tax, and spend controls.”

Agencies are often stuck in the middle: floating cash, managing reconciliation, and absorbing reputational hits when creators aren’t paid on time. Lumanu removes those bottlenecks by letting brands fund a dedicated bank account, while Lumanu handles onboarding, tax compliance, and real-time payouts to vendors. And now, by integrating Visa Direct, Lumanu can route cross-border payments directly to creators’ local accounts, bypassing layers of intermediary banks, hidden FX markups, and multi-day delays so more money lands in creators’ hands, faster.