What the estate thinks it took
Batch totals reported at close, reconciled against stored transactions before the batch is accepted.
T-NET / Settlement
The mismatch is found before the batch is accepted.
End of day is where an acquiring platform earns its keep or costs you a month of reconciliation. Four stages, each with somewhere for the difference to surface.
Batch close
The terminal or the scheduler closes the batch. The gateway reconciles the terminal's totals against the stored transactions and reports any mismatch before the batch is accepted — which is the only point at which the difference is still cheap to investigate.
Clearing
Cleared transactions are assembled into scheme clearing files and into the core banking posting interface. Incoming clearing files are ingested and matched against stored transactions.
Settlement
Settlement positions are calculated per merchant, per institution and per currency, net of MDR and fees, and released to the core banking system and the accounting interface.
Reconciliation and disputes
Three-way reconciliation across terminal, switch and scheme records. Retrieval requests, chargebacks, representments and write-offs follow the dispute case workflow, each stage reflected in the merchant statement and the GL entries.
Three ways
Terminal, switch and scheme have to agree.
Two-way reconciliation tells you that something is wrong. Three-way tells you which of the three is wrong, which is the difference between a question and an investigation.
What we authorised and cleared
The stored transaction record, with RRN, authorisation code and STAN carried from authorisation into clearing.
What the network says it settled
Ingested clearing files, matched against the stored transactions that produced them.
Disputes
A case, not an email thread.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Retrieval request | The issuer asks for evidence. The transaction, its receipt data and its lineage are assembled against the case. |
| Chargeback | The debit is raised against the merchant. The settlement position and the merchant statement reflect it at that stage, not later. |
| Representment | Evidence is submitted back to the scheme within the window, with the case carrying its own state and history. |
| Write-off | Where the case is not defensible, the outcome is recorded and posted rather than left open. |
Merchant-facing statements and the dispute view are presented in MyMercho Porta.
Next step
Send us your message spec. We will send back a profile.
Your scheme endpoint, your CBS interface and your terminal mix are enough for us to come back with an ISO 8583 packaging profile, a sizing note and a certification schedule.