As Europe's largest Merchant Service Provider, Paymentsense is committed to providing you with the highest quality customer experience at the best possible value.
To ensure we are able to meet this commitment, we partner with industry leading organisations to deliver the most cost-efficient service. In view of this you will receive communication from your acquiring bank and terminal lease provider.
If you are unsure who your account partners are, refer to your Merchant Services Agreement.
Clover (formerly First Data)
Clover is the acquiring bank which acts as your banking partner and allows you to accept credit and debit cards. They will deposit funds from card sales into your bank account, and in some cases, manage the invoices for transaction rates. It’s not to be confused with a business bank account.
Terminal lease providers
If you pay a rental fee for your terminal, you will also have an account with either First Data Global Leasing or Paytek. They will collect your monthly Direct Debit your rental fee monthly, and send you an annual VAT schedule and statement.
Other parties involved in card processing
Merchant
The merchant is the business that accepts credit or debit cards as payment from customers (or cardholders in this instance) for goods or services they provide.
Cardholder
The cardholder is someone who pays for goods or services with a credit or debit card. The card is provided to them by their bank (the issuing bank).
Issuing Bank
As well as providing debit or credit cards to their account holders the issuing bank is also a member of the card associations (Visa and MasterCard). Issuing banks pay acquiring banks for purchases that their cardholders make.
Business Bank Account
Much like a personal or current account, a business bank account is a legal requirement for businesses. They can be opened with a high street or commercial bank and are opened in the name of the company, enabling the owner to keep their business transactions separate from their own personal money.
Card Association
You’ll always see either a Visa or a MasterCard logo on all credit and debit cards. But what exactly are they? Well, they’re not banks so they can’t issue credit cards or bank accounts. Instead, they are card associations which are a network of issuing banks and acquiring banks that process card payments. They maintain and improve the card network, acting as an arbiter between the issuing and acquiring banks and manage their own brands.