Although many important terms are used in payment systems, the expressions below are the cornerstones of payment systems. These terms are, so to speak, the ABCs of payment systems.
Issuer:
Credit card companies (generally banks) that issue the card to the customer and track services such as debt, credit, bonus points, and assistance services, notifying the customer accordingly, are called the issuer. In short, it is the name given to the bank that issues a debit card, credit card, or prepaid debit card.
Acquirer:
This is the name given to financial institutions that act as the intermediary enabling merchants to receive payment for their products or services. In short, it is the bank that owns the POS, Virtual POS, or ATM.
Authorization:
This refers to the approval or rejection of a transaction made using a credit card or debit card, following the necessary checks performed by the bank.
The following checks are mainly performed during authorization:
– Card Limit
– Customer Limit
– Card Status
– Prohibited MCC checks (for example, preventing the card from being used at betting sites, etc.)
– Merchant/ATM Transaction Limits
– Account/Balance Check (for debit cards)
On-Us:
This refers to a situation in which the bank that issued the card and the bank that owns the POS/ATM are the same. In these transactions, since the card bank and the POS bank are the same, the authorization is given within the bank without going out to BKM (Turkey's Interbank Card Center). In this way, banks avoid paying a clearing commission on Onus transactions.
Not On-Us:
This refers to a situation in which the bank that issued the card and the bank that owns the POS/ATM are different. If we look at it from the issuer's perspective, this transaction is called Issuer Not Onus; if we look at it from the acquirer's perspective, it is called Acquirer Not Onus. In these transactions, BKM mediates the authorization. Therefore, these transactions are subject to clearing.
