Who are the players?
| Role | Description |
|---|---|
| Cardholder | The customer paying with a card. |
| Merchant | The business receiving the payment. |
| Acquirer | The payments provider that onboards the merchant and connects to the networks. |
| Issuer | The customer’s bank that approves or declines the transaction. |
| Card network (brand scheme) | Visa, Mastercard, and others that transmit messages between acquirers and issuers. |
References defining the model: Visa & Mastercard
The flow in two phases
Authorization Seconds
1
The customer enters or taps card details.
2
Your checkout sends the data to the gateway.
3
The gateway routes it to the acquirer.
4
The card network forwards it to the issuer.
5
The issuer approves or declines the request.
Clearing and settlement Hours to days
1
After capture, transactions are batched for clearing.
2
The issuer sends funds through the network to the acquirer.
3
The acquirer pays the merchant based on its payout schedule.
- Funds movement and timing
What merchants actually experience
Chile
Typical timelines: debit and prepaid around 24 business hours; credit around 48 business hours.Some processors delay payouts up to 10 business days regardless of card type.
Others offer accelerated funding, charging an additional fee to advance payout by one business day.
Brazil
The standard credit-card cycle is around 30 days.Installments are released monthly unless the merchant pays for early release.
Global rule of thumb
Across many markets merchants typically receive funds in two to three business days, depending on processor features, batch cut-offs, and non-business days.Why delays exist
Funding depends on each acquirer’s policies and optional accelerated payout programs (often with a fee). Visa’s risk standards require prompt funding after clearing, but do not mandate uniform payout timing.The scale of the issue
- Chile: Over 580,000 merchants accepted digital payments by March 2024.
- Latin America & Caribbean: About 17.9 million active merchant outlets accept Visa and Mastercard.