The blended merchant account: A game changer for banks and merchants

The legacy merchant account model was designed for a card-centric world. While this worked for years, it now creates barriers for merchants trying to keep pace with changing customer preferences:

• Limited payment options: Merchants cannot easily accept real-time A2A payments. They often need third-party providers, increasing complexity and cost
• Higher costs: Credit card transactions carry interchange, scheme, and processing fees, often 2-3% of the sale, with debit cards at a much lower but not insignificant amount. A2A payments, particularly instant payments, avoid these layers and reduce costs significantly
• Delayed cash flow: Card settlements take a day or more. A2A payments offer the ability to settle instantly, improving cash flow and operational flexibility
• Customers experience gaps: Consumers increasingly expect to pay via bank apps, QR codes, or digital wallets, not just physical cards held in a leather wallet or purse. Although card systems support this flexibility, they often delay the debit to the account or don’t provide value-added features such as a real-time balance display before the purchase
• Siloed fraud prevention: Separate systems for cards and A2A payments make fraud management harder, increasing risk for merchants

Banks that stick only with legacy acquiring risk losing relevance as merchants look elsewhere for modern payment acceptance.

Now imagine a single merchant account where businesses can accept card payments and A2A payments seamlessly. Whether a customer taps a card, scans a QR code, or uses their banking app, the merchant is paid into the account of their choosing, with unified reporting, reconciliation, and fraud protection.

This model delivers clear advantages:

• Improved cash flow: A2A payments settle instantly. Merchants can choose to take advantage of same-day (or quicker) access to funds, supporting better inventory management and payroll needs
• Lower costs: Merchants reduce expensive card fees by shifting part of their volume to lower-cost A2A transactions. Over time, this improves margins significantly
• Enhanced customer experiences: Shoppers choose how they pay whether they use a card, bank transfer, or digital wallet. This improves satisfaction and reduces checkout abandonment
• Simplified operations: One account, one contract, and one portal for reporting and reconciliation. This is a massive win for merchants drowning in complexity
• Better fraud control: Centralized fraud detection across both card and A2A transactions reduces risk and protects merchants from chargebacks

The value of a blended merchant account extends across industries:

• Retailers: Get faster cash flow and lower fees, especially as A2A payments scale through QR codes and mobile apps. Alternatively, they can help the acquirer speed up their cash flow, so the retailer benefits from lower transactional fees as a result. Supermarkets or fashion chains can cut costs while offering modern payment experiences
• E-commerce merchants: Reduce abandonment by providing “pay by bank” options alongside cards, capturing sales that might otherwise be lost, and lowering fees on large transactions
• Hospitality businesses: Benefit from instant, guaranteed payments, especially helpful for deposits, large bookings, and faster turnarounds
• Small businesses and micro-merchants: Gain access to affordable digital payments, leveling the playing field against larger competitors

For the executive overseeing merchant acquiring, this is an opportunity to reimagine the bank’s role in the payment value chain:

• Defend and grow your merchant base: Offer something fintechs and many large competitors don’t: A single, fully integrated account handling both cards and A2A
• Generate new revenue streams: Monetize A2A payments, offering value-added services, and sharing in the cost savings delivered to merchants
• Enhance your bank’s competitive positioning: Help merchants future-proof their business and improve profitability
• Increase loyalty and reduce churn: Provide the flexibility and modern capabilities merchants increasingly demand

This is not about replacing cards. It’s about expanding choice and securing your bank’s role as the indispensable partner for merchant payments.

Delivering this blended model no longer requires years of costly development. ACI Connetic allows banks to unify card processing, A2A payments, fraud management, and digital identity services on a single platform.

With API-driven, cloud-native architecture, ACI Connetic enables:

• Fast integration of real-time A2A payments alongside and augmented by existing card-acquiring capabilities such as card acceptance, dispute management, etc.
• Real-time fraud detection across all payment types
• Scalable, secure operations with constant innovation baked in

Banks avoid the pitfalls of fragmented systems and future-proof their acquiring business, ready to adapt as payments continue to evolve.

Banks face increasing competition from large incumbents as well as nimble fintechs. Offering a blended merchant account creates an opportunity to lead, not follow. You strengthen merchant relationships, open new revenue streams, and position your bank as a forward-thinking partner. Merchants increasingly expect choice, lower costs, and simplicity. If your bank doesn’t provide it, someone else will. By acting now, you capture early-mover advantages, differentiate your brand, and solidify your role in merchants’ future payment strategies.

The rise of A2A payments is inevitable. Combining it with traditional card acceptance into a single merchant account is the logical next step for banks serious about growing and defending their merchant-acquiring business.

This is not just product evolution. It’s a competitive strategy that lowers costs, improves merchant cash flow, enhances customer experience, and strengthens the bank’s market position. 

With ACI Connetic, your bank can move quickly, deliver real value, and win in a changing payments world. The time to lead is now.