Lead: A new Transact + CBORD report finds just 17% of higher‑education institutions have full visibility into payment processing costs, leaving most campuses with fragmented systems, hidden fees and labor‑heavy reconciliation. What happened: The report, “Illuminating the Invisible,” documents that only 22% of campus leaders can calculate total payment costs and that siloed systems for tuition, housing, dining and athletics produce reconciliation burdens and lost cost signals. Who’s involved: Transact, CBORD and campus finance offices; bursars and controllers face the operational impact of disconnected vendor systems and abandoned payments that erode revenue capture. Why it matters: Without centralized payment analytics, colleges struggle to negotiate vendor fees, forecast cash flow and identify cost‑saving automation—risks that affect institutional budgets, staff workloads and student payment experience.