GLOSSARY
Payment Processor
A service provider that routes payment data between merchants, acquirers, and schemes.
A payment processor handles transaction routing, authorization, clearing, and settlement between a merchant, the acquiring bank, and card schemes. Processors often provide tokenization, risk tools, and reconciliation data.
Processor pricing bundles network costs like interchange fees. Support for multiple payment methods (cards, wallets) and local rails (e.g., debit cards, giro cards) helps merchants reduce declines and fees.
In the product
Where this term matters in operation.
The glossary is not meant to be academic. It explains the language teams use in Kotao while selling, planning, paying, reporting, and automating.
In sales
Terms like this appear inside POS, checkout, bookings, offers, and customer communication.
In back office
Finance, inventory, HR, and reporting need the same meaning so reports do not drift apart.
In integrations
APIs, imports, webhooks, and exports work better when teams use the same definitions.
Related terms.
Acquirer
Bank or payment institution that signs merchants and routes their card transactions into the card networks.
Apple Pay
Mobile wallet by Apple that tokenizes cards for contactless and in-app payments.
Card Fraud
Unauthorized card use or theft of credentials to initiate transactions.
Card Network
Payment network (e.g., Visa/Mastercard) that sets rules and routes card transactions between issuers and acquirers.