Payment Processing Participants

There are 6 main participants in a payment processing credit card transaction:

Customer: A holder of a payment card - such as a credit card or debit card - from an issuer.

Issuer: A financial institution that provides the customer with a payment card. The issuer is responsible for the cardholder's debt payment.

Merchant: The organization that sells goods or services to the cardholder.  The merchant that accepts payment cards must have a merchant account with an acquirer.

Acquirer: A financial institution that establishes an account with a merchant and processes payment card authorizations and payments.  The acquirer provides authorization to the merchant that a particular card account is active and that the proposed purchase does not exceed the customer's credit limit.  The acquirer also provides electronic transfer of payments to the merchant's account and is then reimbursed by the issuer via the transfer of electronic funds over a payment network.

Processor: A large data centre that processes credit card transactions and settles funds to merchants.

Payment Gateway: Certified and secure IP-based payment gateways link acquiring processors to businesses.  The gateway enables the authorization, settlement and management of credit, debit and other electronic transactions anytime, anywhere, via Web sites, at retail, and on wireless devices.  Sophisticated international gateways provide risk management and fraud protection services to ecommerce business operations. A gateway partner can offer a powerful array of additional payment processing solutions which increase revenue, and improve profitability for merchants.