Number Of Visa Transactions Per Second

VisaNet, the card network’s payment processing system, handles an average of 150 1000000 transactions per mean solar day and the firm claims it is capable of processing more than 24,000 Visa transactions per second.

The about-accepted payments brand for e-commerce sales in the U.Due south. and Canada, Visa has been investing heavily in its infrastructure and its network only keeps expanding — there are more 3 billion Visa debit and credit cards worldwide, and counting.

How is the payment world’due south behemoth doing it? Well, that’south exactly what we will exist looking at today. But kickoff, allow’s run through some numbers.

Tabular array of Contents

1. Visa by the Numbers
2. Visa Transaction Processing — Who Is Involved?
3. Transaction Menses for Visa Magnetic-Stripe and Fleck Cards
   • Transaction Life Cycles
     • Credit and Debit Transaction Online Dominance Process
     • Transaction Clearing and Settlement
4. Visa Transaction Process for SMS-Based Point-of-Sale and ATM
5. Full general Rules for Visa Processing
   • Visa Card Acceptance
   • Transaction Surcharges
   • Minimum Transaction Corporeality
   • Prohibited Uses
   • Taxes
   • Convenience Fees
   • Government and Instruction Payment Program Service Fee
   • Laundering
   • Tips
   • No Cash Refunds
   • Eolith Fourth dimension Limits
   • Suppressed Account Number and Expiration Engagement
   • Delivery of Products and Services
   • Deposits
   • Installment Payments
   • Cardholder Information
   • Merchant Servicer Registration
   • Storage of Sensitive Data and Payment Application Use

Visa by the Numbers

Visa is a global payments technology visitor, which connects consumers, merchants, fiscal institutions, businesses, strategic partners and government entities in merely near every country in the world, to enable fast, secure and reliable electronic payments.

VisaNet, the company’s transaction processing network, facilitates potency, clearing and settlement of payment transactions and the numbers — payments volume, number of transactions and number of cards in circulation — are huge.

Visa Transaction Processing — Who Is Involved?

Apart from the merchant and their customers, there are several other participants in the Visa transaction procedure. Allow’s have a look at who they are and what they do:

• A cardholder
  is an authorized user of a Visa debit or credit carte du jour or other Visa payment products.
• A merchant
  is any business, which is authorized to accept Visa cards for the payment of products and services.
• An acquirer
  is a bank, which contracts with merchants to accept Visa cards for the payment of products and services. An acquirer may also contract with a tertiary party processor to provide processing services.
• A card issuer
  is a banking company, which maintains the Visa cardholder relationship. It issues Visa cards and contracts with cardholders for the billing and payment of transactions.
• A Payment Facilitator (PF)
  is a visitor, which can enter into a contract with an acquirer to provide payment services to a merchant.
• Visa
  is a publicly-traded company, which works with menu issuers and acquirers. Visa provides card products, promotes its brand, and makes the rules and regulations governing the participation in its programs. Visa also operates the globe’s biggest retail payments network to enable the flow of transactions between acquirers and card issuers.
• VisaNet
  is part of Visa’due south electronic payment system and is a collection of systems, which includes:
  • An potency system through which card issuers can approve or refuse Visa carte transactions.
  • A clearing and settlement system, which processes transactions electronically between acquirers and issuers to brand sure that:
    • Transaction data flows from acquirers to issuers, to be and then posted to cardholders’ accounts.
    • Transaction payments flow from issuers to acquirers, to exist and so credited to the merchant accounts.

Transaction Menstruum for Visa Magnetic-Stripe and Fleck Cards

Transaction Life Cycles

The charts below illustrate the life bike of Visa payment carte transactions for both card-nowadays and card-not-nowadays payments. Details may vary from ane merchant, acquirer or card issuer to another, depending on carte and transaction type, too as the processing system used.

During the say-so process, a Visa carte du jour transaction is canonical or declined by the issuer, or by Visa on the issuer’s behalf.

1. The merchant or cardholder
   inserts a carte du jour into a chip-reading device, swipes it through a magnetic stripe menu reader, or waves information technology in front of a Visa payWave reader.
2. The merchant
   enters the transaction corporeality and, if necessary, sends an say-so request to the acquirer. In some locations, fleck and Visa payWave allow for chip-based offline authorization.
3. The acquirer
   sends an electronic authorization request to VisaNet or determines the network to which the transaction should be routed.
4. VisaNet
   sends the request on to the card issuer.
5. The carte issuer
   provides an online response.
6. VisaNet
   sends the issuer’south authorization response to the acquirer.
7. The acquirer
   forwards the response to the merchant.
8. The merchant
   receives the authority response and finalizes the transaction appropriately.
9. A bulletin
   is sent to terminal and a signature is requested, if required.

Annotation:
In some instances, a Payment Facilitator (PF) may transmit the say-so request and response between the merchant and the acquirer. The presence of a PF during the transaction procedure is dependent on the acquirer and the merchant payment service contractual agreement with the PF.

Transaction Clearing and Settlement

During the immigration and settlement of a bill of fare transaction, the information flows from acquirers to card issuers, before eventually posting to the cardholder’due south accounts. VisaNet facilitates the payment to the acquirer the debit to the menu issuer.

1. The merchant submits the transaction to the acquirer.
2. The acquirer credits the merchant’southward business relationship and submits the electronic transaction to Visa for settlement.
3. VisaNet:
   • Facilitates the settlement.
   • Pays the acquirer and debits the card issuer business relationship, before send the transaction on.
4. The bill of fare issuer:
   • Posts the transaction to its cardholder’southward account.
   • Sends the monthly statement to the cardholder.
5. The cardholder receives the argument.

Visa Transaction Process for SMS-Based Point-of-Auction and ATM

In certain cases, POS and ATM transactions are authorized and cleared (posted) at the aforementioned time and within a single bulletin. You may see this referred to every bit an “online” or “Single-Bulletin System (SMS)” debit transaction. Settlement takes identify from single message processing at certain cutting-off times during the twenty-four hours. The charts beneath illustrate the basic processing steps for a unmarried bulletin POS (Visa / Interlink) and ATM (Visa / Plus) transaction.

1. The customer presents a carte du jour for payment.
2. The merchant or cardholder places the carte inside the fleck-reading device, swipes it through a magnetic-stripe card reader, or alternatively waves it past a Visa payWave reader. The merchant then keys in the transaction amount. The cardholder enters the Pin, if needed. A bulletin requesting transaction potency is transmitted to the acquirer.
3. The acquirer’s system typically determines the network to which the transaction should and so be routed. For Visa, Interlink or Visa Electron, the acquirer transmits the authorization asking electronically to VisaNet. All other transactions are sent on to the appropriate network.
4. VisaNet:
   • Sends on the request to the carte issuer.
   • Facilitates settlement.
5. The bill of fare issuer:
   • Furnishes an online response. Earlier approving a transaction, the card issuer ensures that the funds are bachelor and does the following:
     • Checks for all “statused” accounts, including lost, stolen, apocryphal and available funds.
     • Validates the cardholder’s PIN, if needed.
   • Posts the transaction to the cardholder’south account.
6. VisaNet sends the carte du jour issuer’due south authorization response on to the acquirer.
7. The acquirer then frontward the response on to the merchant.
8. The merchant receives the authorization response to complete the transaction appropriately.

Note:
In some cases, when present, a Payment Facilitator (PF) may transmit the authorization request and response between the merchant and the acquirer.

General Rules for Visa Processing

Merchants are required to follow some basic card acceptance rules for all Visa card transactions. Careful adherence to those rules, as outlined beneath, help heighten customer satisfaction.

Visa Carte du jour Acceptance

Merchants are required to have all types of Visa cards, as long as they are valid. To offer the broadest possible range of payment options to customers, merchants must accept all categories of Visa cards: debit, credit and prepaid.

Transaction Surcharges

Surcharges are non allowed, except in the U.S. and Asia Pacific (Australia and New Zealand). In both cases, merchants may assess a stock-still or variable surcharge on a Visa credit card transaction, subject to certain conditions and applicative laws or regulations.

Minimum Transaction Corporeality

Minimum transaction amounts, which may exist no greater than $ten, may exist imposed only on Visa credit carte du jour transactions.

Prohibited Uses

Visa cards can never exist used for illegal purposes. Moreover, merchants may never employ the Visa carte or account number to refinance existing debts or equally a payment for a debt deemed as uncollectible (for case, to recover funds for a dishonored check).

Taxes

Taxes must exist included in the full transaction corporeality and must never be nerveless separately in greenbacks.

Convenience Fees

Merchants who offering an alternative payment channel (e.thousand. mail service, telephone or eastward-commerce) for customers to pay for products or services may add a convenience fee to the transaction amount.

Merchants, which charge a convenience fee must ensure that the fee is:

• Charged for a bona fide convenience in the form of an alternative payment channel (e.m. mail, telephone or due east-commerce) outside the merchant’s customary payment channels (i.east., not exclusively for the credence of the Visa carte).
• Disclosed clearly to the cardholder as a fee for the alternative payment channel convenience.
• Disclosed prior to the completion of the transaction and the cardholder has been given the opportunity to cancel.
• Added only to a transaction completed in a card-not-present environment.
• A apartment or fixed amount, irrespective of the value of the payment due.
• Applicable to all payment forms, which are accepted in the payment channel.
• Included equally role of the total transaction amount.

The convenience fee must non be:

• Charged by a third political party.
• Added to a recurring transaction.

Moreover, U.South. merchants, which assess a surcharge on a Visa credit menu transaction may non charge a convenience fee in improver to the surcharge.

Government and Instruction Payment Program Service Fee

Any Government and Education Payment Program Service fees must exist properly disclosed and processed.

In the U.Due south., a authorities or education merchant may appraise a fixed or variable service fee for the processing of a Visa card transaction if that fee is:

• Clearly disclosed prior to the completion of the transaction and the cardholder is offered the opportunity to cancel.
• Processed as a separate transaction.

The government and education transaction must include:

• Government authority’southward or pedagogy institution’due south proper noun in the Merchant Proper name field (eastward.g., “U.S. Treasury Taxation Payment” for federal tax payments or “CA DMV” for a country automobile registration payments; the merchant name cannot exceed 25 characters in length).
• Customer support phone number in the Merchant City field.
• State of the merchant in the Merchant Land field.

The service fee transaction must include:

• Merchant or service provider name in the offset 3, 7 or 12 positions, followed past an asterisk (*) in the next position, followed by the words “Service Fee”.
• Customer back up telephone number in the Merchant Urban center field.
• State of the service provider in the Merchant State field.

To qualify for the the most favorable interchange charge per unit, all bill of fare transactions must be CPS qualified.

Laundering

Merchants are required to eolith transactions merely for their own business. Depositing transactions for another business, which does not have a valid merchant agreement, is known every bit laundering and is non allowed. Laundering is a blazon of fraud, associated with high chargeback rates and the potential for accommodating illegal activity.

Tips

U.S. eating place, taxicab, limousine, bar, tavern, beauty / hairdresser store and health / beauty spa merchant transactions involving a Visa credit or debit card may receive tips from their customers. Merchants must never estimate the tip, but must follow Visa procedures.

Annotation that cardholders tin now check their credit or checking accounts near instantaneously using their phones. An authority that includes an estimated tip tin reduce a cardholder’s bachelor funds or credit by an unrecognizable or unexpected amount.

This kind of transaction may take place if a cardholder leaves a cash tip or adds a tip that is less than the estimated corporeality used for the authorization. This practice applies to magnetic-stripe and chip transactions.

In some restaurants, if the tip is unknown when the authority takes place, the merchant must authorize only the known amount, just may articulate for upwards to 20 percent greater than the authorized amount. If the tip is greater than 20 percentage, the merchant may then obtain a second authorization.

No Greenbacks Refunds

Cash refunds for returned merchandise, which was originally purchased with a Visa carte are not allowed. Visa does non typically allow cash refunds for any credit or debit carte du jour transaction. By issuing credits, merchants protect their customers from individuals who might fraudulently make a purchase on their Visa bill of fare account and and so return the merchandise for cash.

If a transaction was completed with a Visa prepaid card, and the cardholder is returning items, simply no longer possess the menu, which was used for payment, the merchant may give a greenbacks refund or in-store credit.

Deposit Fourth dimension Limits

Visa transaction receipts should be deposited as specified by the acquirer. In that location are deadlines, by which an acquirer must process a transaction.

Suppressed Account Number and Expiration Appointment

The Visa account number must be suppressed in accordance with Visa Rules and local laws and regulations. Visa requires that the account number be partly suppressed on the receipt, however, rules will vary by region.

The expiration engagement should not be displayed on the cardholder copy of the transaction receipt and point-of-sale (POS) terminals must comply with these requirements.

Delivery of Products and Services

Merchandise or services must exist delivered to the cardholder at the time of the transaction. Cardholders await immediate delivery of products and services unless other delivery arrangements have been fabricated.

For carte du jour-not-present transactions, cardholders should be clearly informed of the delivery method and tentative delivery date. Transactions cannot be deposited until the products have been shipped or services received.

Deposits

For transactions where the customer pays a deposit, 2 authorizations are required: ane for the eolith amount and ane for the balance amount.
Some merchandise requires delivery after the transaction engagement, in which case the customer pays a deposit at the time of the transaction and agrees to pay the balance upon delivery of the trade or services.

To complete a deposit transaction, merchants are required to:

• Create two transaction receipts, one for the eolith amount and one for the balance. Write, print out, or postage stamp “Deposit” or “Residual,” as needed, on the receipt.
• Obtain an authorization for each transaction receipt on their corresponding transaction dates. An authorization code must be present on each receipt. If the POS device does not automatically print authorisation codes on sales receipts, write the codes on the receipts so they are clearly identifiable equally such.
• Ensure that “Delayed Delivery,” is written, printed or stamped along with the say-so code, on each transaction receipt.

Merchants may deposit the deposit portion of the transaction prior to the delivery of the goods or services. However, the balance portion of the transaction must non be deposited prior to delivery.

Installment Payments

An installment payment is a functionality of the credit card to let a client to pay the full corporeality of the transaction in installments. This can be washed through interest-bearing financing (granted past the card issuer), allowing the merchant to be paid in one lump sum, or with interest-free financing granted by the merchant.

Cardholder Information

Cardholder business relationship numbers and personal information must exist kept confidential. Customers expect any personal or financial data they may requite provide in the course of a transaction to exist safeguarded.

Keeping that trust is essential to fraud prevention and good customer service. Cardholder account numbers and other personal information should be released only to the acquirer or processor or every bit specifically required by law.

Merchant Servicer Registration

Merchants and their Visa acquirers must ensure that Third Party Agents who are handling Visa account numbers are registered in accord with the Visa Core Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules.

Visa defines a merchant servicer (MS) as a Third Party Agent, which has a direct relationship with a merchant and is storing, processing, transmitting or otherwise has access to Visa account numbers on the merchants’ behalf. This type of Third Party Agent performs services such as payment gateway, shopping cart, fraud scrubbing, loyalty programs, POS integrator, etc.

Merchants and their acquirers are responsible for ensuring each MS maintains compliance with the Payment Card Manufacture (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS), validates PCI DSS compliance with Visa and is preoperly registered as a MS with Visa.

Visa recommends that merchants who use POS integrators use certified integrators or resellers from the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council Qualified Integrators and Resellers (QIR) Program, which provides payment application developers, integrators and resellers with the training to help merchants and industry participants install and configure validated PA-DSS payment applications to ensure a merchant’s PCI DSS compliance.

Many merchant POS systems are gear up with remote admission services, so that integrators and resellers can provide monitoring and software support. If remote access to the POS system is not configured or maintained in compliance with PCI DSS and PA-DSS (east.g. with default or shared remote access IDs without two-factor authentication or regular password changes), merchants can be infected with malware, which puts them at risk for breaches and cardholder data compromises.

Storage of Sensitive Information and Payment Application Use

All stored, processed or transmitted sensitive cardholder account or transaction information must be compliant with the PCI DSS and the Visa Cadre Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules. To protect sensitive customer and transaction data from compromise merchants that store, process or transmit cardholder account or transaction data must:

• Keep all textile containing business relationship numbers, paper as well as electronically, in a secure expanse attainable only to selected personnel. Merchants with newspaper receipts need to be extremely careful during the storage or transfer of sensitive data and should at all times:
  • Promptly provide the drafts to the acquirer.
  • Destroy all copies of the drafts, which are not delivered to the acquirer.
• Return cardholder data unreadable, both in storage and before discarding.
• Never keep total-runway, magnetic-stripe, CVV2 and chip data, post-obit transaction authorization. Storage of track information elements in excess of proper name, personal account number (PAN) and expiration date after transaction authorization is strictly prohibited.
• Use payment applications, which comply with the PCI Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS).

Epitome source: Wikimedia / Lance Cpl. Brandon R. Holgersen.