Clearly Payments

DECEMBER 9, 2023

The responsibilities of acquirers extend to managing intricate settlement processes, providing merchants with comprehensive reporting and reconciliation services. Acquirer: The acquirer, akin to a “bank” for the merchant, assumes the risk by underwriting their credit.

ISOs

PYMNTS

MARCH 11, 2020

Connor noted that historically, acquiring was centered around indirect sales channels, through independent sales organizations (ISOs) or merchant service providers (MSPs). The shift through the last several decades has been from the ISO to a value-added reseller (VAR) referral relationship — and now, to SaaS companies.

Payment APIs and Integration

Exact Payments

OCTOBER 30, 2023

Merchant services providers Merchant services providers (MSPs) equip merchants with all the tools they need to start processing card payments. There are several types of MSPs, including independent sales organizations (ISOs) and payment facilitators. Processors handle authorization, settlement, and other transaction-related services.

Facilitators

Clearly Payments

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Transaction Settlement: After authorization, the payment processor initiates the transfer of funds from the buyer’s account to the seller’s account. Moreover, they manage complex processes such as fund settlement and provide comprehensive reporting and reconciliation services.

Processors

Clearly Payments

DECEMBER 1, 2023

In the intricate landscape of payment processing, merchants are confronted with a choice between three types of payment processors: Acquirers, Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs or MSPs), and Aggregators (PSPs or PayFacs). An ISO is what Visa calls their approved merchant account providers and an MSP is what MasterCard calls them.

ISOs