ACH
Batch bank-to-bank transfers under Nacha rules, used for payroll and bills.
Acquiring bank
The merchant's bank in a card payment, which settles card sales to the merchant.
Anti-money laundering
The controls banks use to detect and prevent money laundering.
B2B payments
Payments between businesses, usually to settle invoices on agreed terms.
BaaS
A bank's accounts, payments and cards, offered to other companies through APIs.
Bank Secrecy Act
The US anti-money laundering law behind bank reporting and KYC rules.
BIN sponsorship
A network member bank lets a fintech offer cards or accept payments.
Buy now, pay later
A checkout loan that splits a purchase into installments, often four over six weeks.
Commercial real estate loan
A loan secured by commercial property, usually repaid from its rental income.
Construction loan
A short-term loan paid out in stages to fund building or renovating property.
Core banking system
The bank's central system for accounts, transactions and its ledger.
Cross-border payments
Payments between countries, often with currency conversion and several banks.
Demand deposit account
A bank account, like checking, with funds available on demand.
DSCR
Net operating income divided by annual debt payments, a core loan underwriting test.
Earned wage access
Early access to wages already earned, before the scheduled payday.
Electronic funds transfer
Any electronic money transfer, from ACH and wires to debit card and instant payments.
Embedded finance
Payments, accounts and loans offered inside a non-bank's app or website.
Embedded lending
Loans offered inside another company's app or checkout.
Embedded payments
Payments built into a software platform, so users pay and get paid in one place.
FBO account
A pooled bank account held for the benefit of a company's customers.
FDIC pass-through insurance
FDIC coverage that can reach each owner of custodial account funds at an insured bank.
Fedwire
The Federal Reserve's system for final, real-time wire transfers between banks.
GENIUS Act
The 2025 federal law that sets the rules for issuing payment stablecoins in the US.
Independent sales organization
A company that resells an acquiring bank's card processing services to merchants.
Instant payments
Account-to-account payments that settle in seconds, 24/7/365.
Interchange fee
The fee a merchant's bank pays the card issuer on each purchase.
ISO 20022
The global standard for payment messages, with richer, structured data.
Issuing bank
The cardholder's bank, which issues the card and approves each purchase.
KYB
Verifying a business customer, its owners and its risk.
KYC
Verifying who a customer is before and after an account opens.
Loan origination
Creating a loan, from application and underwriting to closing and funding.
Merchant account
An account with an acquiring bank that lets a business accept card payments.
Neobank
An app-based financial company whose accounts usually come from a partner bank.
OFAC
The Treasury office that runs US sanctions and the SDN list.
PayFac
A company that lets businesses accept cards as sub-merchants under its account.
Payment processor
The company that moves card transaction data so payments get authorized and settled.
Payment rails
The networks that move money, such as ACH, wires, cards and instant payments.
Payouts
Money a business sends to sellers, workers or customers, often in bulk.
Prepaid card
A card that spends money loaded onto it in advance.
Private credit
Loans from nonbank investors, negotiated directly with borrowers, not traded publicly.
Push-to-card
Sending money to a debit or prepaid card over card networks, often in near real time.
Securitization
Pooling loans and selling securities backed by their payments to investors.
Sponsor bank
The chartered bank behind a fintech's regulated products.
Stablecoin
A digital token pegged to a currency, usually the US dollar, that moves on blockchains.
SWIFT code
The 8- or 11-character code that identifies a bank in international payments.
Third-party risk management
How banks manage the risks of vendors and fintech partners.
Tokenized deposits
Bank deposits recorded as tokens on a blockchain, still claims on the bank.
Virtual card
A card number issued digitally, with no plastic card.
Warehouse facility
A credit line a lender draws on to fund new loans until they are sold or repaid.
Wire transfer
A one-off bank-to-bank payment; domestic wires settle in real time and are final.