What does an acquirer do in payments?

An acquirer is a financial institution that processes payments on behalf of a merchant.

Remember that “monétique” combines the words “money” and “electronic”. It covers all electronic and IT systems used to manage payment cards and process card transactions.

In other words, it includes issuing and using a bank card as well as processing the related transactions.

Five main actors are involved in payment processing:

• The medium: the bank card.
• The issuer: the bank that provides the card to the holder.
• The cardholder: the person using the card.
• The acceptor: the merchant accepting electronic payments.
• The acquirer: the merchant’s financial institution.

In short, the acquirer processes transactions made with debit and credit cards. It manages the financial side of the transaction. Without an acquirer, funds would never reach your business bank account.