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Cards terminology

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Cards scheme
Cards scheme

TermDescription
MerchantA merchant refers to a business or an individual that sells goods or services and accepts payments via payment cards.
MCCA Merchant Category Code (MCC) is a 4-digit number that classifies the type of goods or services a merchant offers.

Examples:
4816 - Computer Network/Information Services
5139 - Commercial Footware
Card AcquirerA card acquirer refers to a financial institution or payment service provider that enables merchants to accept card payments from customers.
The acquirer establishes and maintains merchant accounts, processes transactions and ensures the funds from these transactions are deposited into the merchant’s payment account.
Acquiring ProcessorAn acquiring processor is a third-party company that handles the technical and operational aspects of payment card acquiring on behalf of a card acquirer.

Example: Silverflow
Card IssuerSee the description here.
Payment CardA payment card refers to a payment instrument issued by financial institutions to their customers, enabling them (the cardholders) to access the funds in their payment account.
Issuing ProcessorAn issuing processor is a third-party company that handles the technical and operational aspects of payment card issuance on behalf of a card issuer.

Examples: Marqeta, Worldline.
CardholderA cardholder refers to an individual or an entity that owns and uses a payment card to purchase goods or services from a merchant.
Card TransactionA card transaction refers to a transaction made by the use of a payment card. For more details see the description here.

For card-present transactions (CP), both the cardholder and payment card are physically present, enabling the business to validate the transaction in real time. The cardholder swipes, inserts, or taps the card at a physical POS terminal.

Card-not-present transactions (CNP) take place online, where the cardholder cannot present the physical card to the business at the time of the payment. The payment information is provided electronically or verbally.

Example: entering card details on an e-commerce website.
Card NetworkThe term card network refers to the physical and operational infrastructure that facilitates the electronic transfer of funds between different parties. The term card network is often used interchangeably with the term card scheme (that focuses on the rules, procedures, and standards), despite the fact that there are subtle differences depending on the context.

Examples: Mastercard, Visa, American Express.
Card Funding TypeA card funding type defines the way the card is funded.

Common funding types include:
  • Credit: cardholders borrow money up to a pre-approved credit limit.
  • Debit: directly linked to the cardholder’s payment account, so funds are withdrawn directly from the account at the time of purchase.
  • Deferred Debit: linked to the cardholder’s payment account but the funds are not debited from the current account's balance (booked balance and available balance) immediately.
  • Prepaid: preloaded with a specific amount of funds that can be spent until the balance is depleted. These cards are not linked to a bank account and do not involve borrowing.
Card CategoryA card category refers to a classification of payment cards based on the target market:
  • Consumer cards - are intended for personal use by individuals.
  • Commercial cards - are designed for business or corporate use.
PAN A Primary Account Number (PAN) refers to a 12 to 19-digit number that serves as a unique identifier of a payment card.
BINThe Bank Identification Number (BIN) refers to the first 6 or 8 digits of the Primary Account Number (PAN). It identifies the card issuer.
Masked PANA Masked Primary Account Number (PAN) is a concealed segment of a PAN when displayed or printed, to protect it from anyone who does not have a legitimate reason to see it.

Example: 492500******1234
CVV/CVC The Card Verification Value (CVV) or Card Verification Code (CVC) is a 3 or 4-digit number, usually located on the signature panel on the back of the payment card. It is used as a security measure for card-not-present transactions, where a Personal Identification Number (PIN) cannot be manually entered by the cardholder.

Examples: CVV is used by Visa, CVC by Mastercard.
PINA Personal Identification Number (PIN) is a secret 4 to 6-digit numeric code belonging to the card and serving as a security code.
3DSThree-Domain Secure (3DS) is a multi-factor authentication protocol that helps to confirm a payer’s identity during a card transaction. It acts as an additional layer of fraud prevention in order to comply with Strong Customer Authentication (SCA).
ChargebackSee the description here.

Other glossaries​